The AG assured the court that a school and marriage hall would function without any interruption and the puja would also be conducted as usual.
The AG assured the court that a school and marriage hall would function without any interruption and the puja would also be conducted as usual.
A division bench of the Madras High Court on Tuesday ordered the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments (HR&CE) department to return the notice by April 21, on a writ appeal preferred by Shri Ram Samaj, a registered society. Ayodhya Ashwameta Maha Mandapam Against the appointment of ‘Thakkar’ (fit person) in 2013 to manage his affairs, at West Mambalam, Chennai.
Justices M. Duraiswami and TV Thamilselvi granted time to the HR&CE department to file their counter-affidavit on the writ appeal. He told Advocate General R. Shunmugasundaram that neither the functioning of Sri Sitaram Vidyalaya Matriculation School nor the marriage hall owned by the society would be disrupted in any way by the department during this period.
Advocate AK Sriram, representing the executive officer of Teynampet Balasubramaniaswamy temple, who was appointed as a fit person of the society, also assured the court that the puja as well as other rituals and festivities would be conducted as usual. This assurance was given after senior advocate Satish Parasaran, representing the appellant society, insisted that its regular functioning should not be crippled.
In its arguments before the court, the society stated that it got registered as a society in 1958. Its aim was to promote Indian culture, art and philosophy; establishment of educational institutions; To provide facilities for funeral rites to the poor and needy irrespective of caste, creed or religion; Facilitating marriage without profit motive; Every year do Shri Ram Navami Festival etc.
For the purpose of organizing the festival, the society had installed large sized images of Lord Shri Ram, Lakshmana, Sita and Lord Hanuman in its premises. “It is pertinent to state that there is no idol of any God which is revered according to any established Agam Shastras and only the images mentioned above are used,” the society said and added that Homa and Vedas Parayans were also organized on special occasions.
It claimed that MV Ramani, a life member of the society, had a habit of filing complaints against office-bearers and members of the governing body since 2004. Based on the complaint lodged by him, the HR and CE department initiated an inquiry and passed an order. Declaring the society as a place of public religious worship by the Hindu community on December 31, 2013 as it had allegedly installed idols and worshiped through public contributions.
The HR&CE department also appointed a qualified person to manage the affairs of the society to protect its assets and regulate revenue receipts. Immediately, the society filed a writ petition in the High Court in January 2014 questioning the authority of the department to intervene in the affairs of a society and granted an interim stay on the December 2013 proceedings. This migration had been going on for more than eight years.
However, after taking up the matter for final hearing on March 17 this year, Justice VM Velumani dismissed the writ petition and vacated the interim stay on the ground that it would decide on disputed questions of fact such as whether the society had a temple or not. cannot be done. writ jurisdiction. He also refused to go into the issue of whether the idols were installed according to the Agama scriptures or not and left them open for movement in front of a suitable platform.
When this order of the Single Judge was brought up on appeal before the Division Bench on Tuesday, the AG informed the court that the fit man had taken charge of the society on Monday. When the judges wanted to know whether there was any law and order problem and whether senior citizens were involved, the AG replied in the affirmative and said that many people were detained for creating such problem but they were arrested on the same day. was released.
Later, the judges gave him time to file a counter-affidavit on behalf of the Human Resources and CE Department and decided to appeal for hearing on April 21.