438th birth anniversary of king Thirumalai Nayak celebrated in Madurai

MADURAI: The 438th birth anniversary of

king Thirumalai Nayak

was celebrated in a grand manner on Thursday in

Madurai

. A huge crowd gathered at King Thirumalai Nayak Mahal to pay tribute to his statue and on behalf of the state government Information Minister

Kadambur C Raju

and Minister for Cooperation Sellur K Raju took part.

The event has been celebrated as a government function since 2016.

Addressing newsmen Kadambur C Raju said that former chief minister J Jayalalithaa made the announcement of celebrating the king’s birth anniversary as a state function. He said that he will appeal to the chief minister on making the day a government holiday in future.

Minister Raju also said that the present statue was installed by MGR.

Stating that there was a demand to install a bronze statue for King Thirumalai Nayak, he said, “Sellur K Raju and I took the demand to the chief minister and he has ordered to install a life-size bronze statue.”

The minister added that the time will arrive soon for the public to visit

Veda Nilayam

. Government will take steps to ensure it happens after the ongoing legal case ends, he said.

Thirumalai Nayak was the key architect of Madurai city as various construction activities that define the city took place during his stint in the 17th Century.

A large number of people from Naidu community from various districts thronged to the Mahal to pay tribute. Processions with musical bands were conducted and women carrying pots of milk held an ‘abishekam’ ritual for the statue.

People also paid their respects to another statue of the king at Arapalayam Cross Road in Madurai.

Former chief secretary of Tamil Nadu and founder and president of RMR Pasarai P

Rama Mohana Rao

also visited and paid tribute. Following this, he held a meeting with his supporters.

During the event, members of Telugu Jana Seva staged a protest in front of the venue urging the central government to name Madurai airport after King Thirumalai Nayak.

Vehicular movement on Palace Road was affected due to unorganised parking and processions. A large number of police personnel were deployed for security reasons.