On April 14, 2026, J.P. Nadda, former BJP national president and current Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare, stated that the BJP would make every effort to enable the lighting of the Karthigai Deepam on the deepathoon, a stone pillar located on Thirupparankundram Hill in Madurai, Tamil Nadu. Nadda made these remarks during a campaign event in Tiruvannamalai, where he supported BJP candidate C. Elumalai for the local assembly seat. He emphasized that the party would protect the site to permit devotees to perform the ritual on the hill.
