Engineer put under temporary suspension over power outage during Vice President Radhakrishnan's Madurai temple visit

A junior electrical engineer at the Meenakshi Sundareswarar Temple was placed under temporary suspension following a two-minute power blackout during the visit of Vice President C P Radhakrishnan here two days ago, the temple administration said.

The engineer, identified as S Janakiraman, was suspended effective October 31, the temple administration said in an official suspension order.

The disciplinary action was initiated under Section 56 (1) of the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Act of 1959. The order was officially signed by R Rukmani, Head of the Board of Trustees for the Arulmigu Meenakshi Sundareswarar Temple.

The formal charges outline that on October 30, the Vice President, along with Tamil Nadu Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar, visited the temple for darshan.

After completing the visit, while the Vice President was addressing journalists on East Chithirai Street, the power supply was interrupted for two minutes, plunging the temple into darkness.

The administration's notice cited severe carelessness during a crucial VVIP visit, adding that the official's actions brought disrepute to both the state government and the temple's administration.

Janakiraman has been directed to submit a formal written explanation for the lapse within 15 days. If he fails to respond within this stipulated timeframe, further administrative action will proceed based on the existing documents.

The suspension order also notes that he has 30 days to file an appeal with the appropriate authorities if he wishes to contest the charges.

Citing the state's power infrastructure, the Vice President said that the Goddess was intentionally showing the country the true extent of power cuts in Tamil Nadu.

The AIADMK criticised the administration, pointing out that a similar power outage had occurred at the temple just a day earlier during the visit of former Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami.

Tamil Nadu Electricity Minister R Nirmal Kumar earlier clarified that the blackout was not a grid failure, but a technical glitch that happened at the local substation while preemptively shifting the temple's power supply to a generator for the VIP visit.

This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text. Only the headline has been changed.