It is more than a week since President Pranab Mukherjee visited the Mariamman Temple at Punnainallur, a village panchayat, near Thanjavur. People in the area are still puzzled by his visit.
Official sources confirm that R. Gopalan, former Secretary of the Department of Economic Affairs at the Union Ministry of Finance, was instrumental in bringing the President to the temple. Mr. Gopalan, the public face of the Finance Ministry when Pranab Mukherjee was at the helm, is said to have impressed upon the President the significance of this temple. A fully convinced President made it to the temple.
The President offered two silk saris: one to the main deity Mariamman; and the other to Durga. Mr. Gopalan was among those who received the President and accompanied him to the temple.
