A video of a private temple in Kanchipuram, Tamil Nadu showing it being demolished with the intention of reconstruction is viral with the false claim that the Tamil Nadu state government demolished the temple.
BOOM found that the temple in the viral video - Sri Nalla Kamba Vinayagar Temple, is privately owned and not under the care and supervision of the Tamil Nadu government's Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Department.
It was undergoing demolition in December 2023 with the intention to be reconstructed, set to begin this month, as confirmed by a family member from the temple trust to BOOM.
The 50 second video has a Tamil text which translates to, "Sri Nalla Kamba Vinayagar Temple located at Kanchipuram Nimanthakarar Street is 1000 (thousand) years old. This temple was demolished to ground level"
The video was posted on X (formerly known as Twitter) by the handle 'Tathvam-asi' (@ssaratht) with the caption, "I can't wait for the @mkstalin @Udhaystalin family to face the consequences (karma to hit back) of their crimes against our Hindu temples. Shame on all those Hindus who voted for them."
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The video is being shared on X with the same false claim.
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FACT-CHECK
BOOM found that the temple in the viral video - Sri Nalla Kamba Vinayagar (Lord Ganesha) Temple, is a privately owned and was not demolished by the Tamil Nadu government as being claimed in social media posts.
We found a quote tweet on the viral post by the Tamil Nadu government's Fact Check Unit (FCU) rubbishing the claim stating that the state government's Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Department (HR&CE) does not control the temple and it was not demolished by the state.
TN FCU further stated that a private administration themselves demolished the temple as it wants to construct a new temple in the same place where the old structure built in 1882 stood.
Taking a hint from that, we geo-located the temple at Nimanthakara street in Kanchipura, Tamil Nadu. Visuals available from last year on Google Maps match with the temple seen in the viral video which confirm it is the same location.
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BOOM then reached out to a shopkeeper at Nimanthakara Street in Kanchipuram, Tamil Nadu. The shopkeeper confirmed that the viral video is from there and stated that the temple is privately owned - Sri Nalla Kamba Vinayagar Temple, and not a government-controlled temple as being claimed.
BOOM then reached out to Ranjith Kumar, whose father - K Senthil Kumar is a trustee of Sri Nalla Kamba Vinayagar Temple. "This is a 140-year-old temple, it is our own property, and has been passed down five generations; all of us continuing to maintain this temple. The temple underwent 'Balalayam' ritual on December 8, 2023, before the demolition." He also added that the visuals in the viral video are from the demolition conducted on January 2, 2024. "The temple was in a bad state and also damaged which is why it had to be demolished, for it to be reconstructed again. We are currently constructing a new temple on the same site where the old temple was present. We also consulted an architect who gave quotations for the structure and design of the temple. Next week the construction of the temple will start," Kumar stated
"All these rumours on social media are false that it is a government owned temple," further added Kumar.
Kumar also sent us a YouTube video from December 8, 2023, of the 'Balalayam' ritual which was held that day in the temple before it was set to be demolished. Balalayam is a ritual performed before making any structural change to the temple or the deity.
The video can be seen below which was posted with the caption when translated reads, "Sri Nalla Kamba Vinayagar Temple Ballalayam Festival"
Kumar also sent us photos of the temple design and materials proposed for the new temple in the same location. BOOM has used Google Lens to translate the text from Tamil to English. These can be seen below.