India, Oct. 27 -- Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay was only asked to affirm his faith in the presiding deity, not convert to Hinduism, before entering the Meenakshi Amman temple in Madurai, the Madras High Court has said.

"The Hon'ble chief minister who is a Christian by faith was not asked to convert to Hinduism. He was only requested to affirm his reverence for the deity. This is what we call an inclusive approach," a bench of Justices GR Swaminathan and P Murugan said in an order dated October 30.

The High Court ruled that non-Hindus seeking to enter Agamic temples in Tamil Nadu must submit an undertaking affirming their faith in the presiding deity and agreeing to abide by the customs and practices of the temple.

"If any No...