Dileep visited this temple twice: 'Judge ammavan', becoming the centre of attention after actress assault case

KOTTAYAM: The Cheruvally temple and 'Judge ammavan', where Dileep had prayed twice to get relief from legal proceedings, have come into the spotlight after the court verdict in the actress attack case.

The Judge Ammavan Kovil is a sub-temple of the Cheruvally Devi Temple, a temple of the Travancore Devaswom Board.

Dileep's brother Anoop was the first to visit in 2017 when Dileep was remanded in custody for being accused in the actress attack case. Dileep visited in March 2019. Dileep again visited the temple of Judge Ammavan in 2022 to pray. For years, those involved in court cases have been coming to the temple to offer prayers to Judge Ammavan to get justice for their side. The prayer is done by submitting a copy of the petition to the temple and making offerings. When the Sabarimala women's entry issue reached the court, former Devaswom Board President Prayar Gopalakrishnan submitted the case documents to the temple and prayed for a favourable verdict. Many people, from ordinary people to celebrities from the film, serial and political fields, come to visit every day.

The puja at the Judge Amavan temple is held at 8 pm after the pujas at the Cheruvally Devi Temple. Film stars Siddique, Bhama, Vishal, etc. have all come here. When the cricket bribery controversy and case came up, Indian star Sreesanth also came to offer obeisance. R. Balakrishna Pillai was a devotee of Judge Ammavan. Followers of Jayalalithaa, Rahul Gandhi, and K. Karunakaran have also made obeisances here.

History of Judge Ammavan

Judge Ammavan was Govinda Pillai of Thalavadi Ramavarmapuram, a notable judge in the Sadar Court of Travancore under Maharaja Dharmaraja (Kartika Thirunal Rama Varma) (late 18th-early 19th century). He was meticulous in administering justice and had his sister's son Padmanabha Pillai executed based on a misunderstanding. When Govinda Pillai realized that he had made a mistake and that his nephew was innocent, he pleaded with the King that he be punished. To escape this predicament, Dharmaraja asked Pillai to pass judgment on himself. Pillai immediately ordered himself to be hanged from a tree with both his legs cut off, so that he would die a slow and painful death. He also asked that his body be left hanging for three days, wanting everyone to know that no one was above the law. Months passed. Rumours soon spread about the sighting of Pillai's spirit wandering the area. His spirit was confined to a stone in the Cheruvalli temple. Govinda Pillai was the descendant of the Cheruvalli Payyampally family.