Subscribe in a reader | Subscribe by Email Well, 28 out of 29 agree to relocate, says Deputy FT minister Saravanan:
Twenty-eight out of 29 Hindu temples sitting on disputed land around Kuala Lumpur have agreed to relocate by May.
Deputy Federal Territories Minister Datuk M. Saravanan said all 28 temple caretakers had agreed to relocate to several locations provided by the Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) except for the Sri Muniaswarar Temple in Jalan Air Panas, Setapak, which remained adamant in staying put.
“It is the government’s policy not to demolish any house of worship without first giving it an alternative area to relocate to.
“To those who refuse to relocate, they will be given 30 days and an alternative location, following which we may proceed to demolish the building,“ he told reporters at the Buddha Miao You Temple in Setapak yesterday.
Saravanan said the temples had been given notices to relocate last year but many refused to do so until the DBKL issued the last notice on March 1.
“We did not force them to move out without giving them another place to go; several alternatives had been suggested,” he said.
Its indeed a good news as ugly confrontation leading to demolishment of temples have been avoided. However, it will be better if the list of temples, date of establishment, registration status of the temple committee, cost of relocation, land status and location of new sites, are also revealed (both offline and online) so that we don’t find temples end up next to sewerage ponds or water tanks.
And what is the reason for the sole temple not agreeing to relocate?
