Punjab & Haryana High Court Directs State To Probe Management Of Lands Assigned To Temple, Gurudwaras

Observing that there is no well-formed government machinery to streamline management of land assigned to religious communities for building temples or Gurudwaras, the Punjab & Haryana High Court directed the authorities of both states to constitute High Powered Committees to look into same.

A division bench of Justice Sureshwar Thakur and Justice Lalit Batra said that because of the lack of government machinery to manage the Maufi land (revenue free land assigned to religious communities), it was apprehended that "temples or Gurudwaras or Deras functioning in the States of Punjab, and Haryana are also misappropriating the incomes reared from such Muafi lands."

The Court further added that there was a genuine prima facie inference that the performance of daily apposite rituals inside gurdawaras or temples, may not be so done, by those Shehbits or by those Granthis, who are appointed following the financial rules and instructions, or in terms of the relevant customary laws.

Consequently, the bench directed the Additional Chief Secretary, Revenue of Punjab, and the Additional Chief Secretary, Revenue of Haryana to constitute a three-member High Powered Committee for their respective states.

The Court directed the following agendas of the Committee:

i) Draw statistics of the grants made to the religious denominations.

ii) The conditions of the grant, and, whether such conditions were breached.

iii) Whether upon breach of the conditions the grants have been rescinded.

iv) Whether subsequently there is a well formed set up for regulating the able cultivations of lands, assigned as Muafis to the Hindus and Sikhs.

v) Whether there is a regular auditing of the incomes derived from such Muafi lands.

vi) Whether there is a well established, and, regulated system for appointment of Mohatmims or Shehbits or Granthis, or registered societies, to thus ensure the performance of daily rituals inside Sikh gurdawaras or Hindu temples, and/or to ensure upkeepings and maintenance of Sikh gurdwaras and Hindu temples, besides to ensure the well appropriations of incomes derived therefroms

The development came while hearing the plea filed by Mohtamim of a Temple, Mandir Shri Satya Narayan, challenging the refusal of the revenue authority to declare him as the owner of land. 

As per the revenue records, the Court noted that the name of Nagar Panchayat was entered as owner and the name of the temple was recorded as cultivator of the land.

The Court opined that in derogation of the interest of the temple, neither one of the predecessors-in-interest of the petitioner nor the instant petitioner, who is the purported Mohtmim of the temple, can stake an independent right of ownership over the disputed lands.

Justice Sureshwar Thakur explained that, "in Hindu law, an idol inside a temple is a minor, and, thereovers guardianship is assumed by a Shehbit or a Mohtmim. The Shehbit or a Mohtmim of an idol inside the temple, but on behalf of the minor deity, manages, and, takes care of not only the temple, but also of the lands appurtenant to the temple. Therefore, a Shehbit or a Mohtmim, does not thereby become the owner of the lands, which he otherwise cultivates on behalf of the idol inside the temple."

The Court further directed the District Collector to appoint a Mohtmim of the minor deity inside the temple, to ensure that all the daily rituals are performed in the temple, and, also to ensure that "therebys the lands appurtenant to the temple are cultivated, so that the income derived therefrom, are ensured to be exclusively kept or reserved for the upkeep and maintenance of the temple."

Furthermore, it also directed the authorities to ensure that there was no mismanagement of the funds of the temple.

In the light of the above, the plea was dismissed.

Veneet Sharma, Advocate for the petitioner.

Maninder Singh, DAG, Punjab

Nandan Jindal, Advocate and Tushar Sabherwal, Advocate for respondent No.4.

M.L. Saini, Advocate for respondents No.5, 6 and 10.

 Citation: 2024 LiveLaw (PH) 59

Title: MANDIR SHRI SATYA NARAYAN v. STATE OF PUNJAB AND OTHERS

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