Government hasn’t visited Tuljapur and Shanishingnapur Devasthans in the past 5 years : HVP

Advocate Virendra Ichalkaranjikar

Mumbai – “Maharashtra Government took over the management of many big Hindu temples under the pretext of better governance, giving facilities to devotees, claiming that temples were being mismanaged, etc. Among these, Shri Tuljabhavani Temple was taken over in 2015 and Shanishingnapur Temple was taken over in 2018, but no one from the Law and Justice Department of the Maharashtra Government has visited these two temples since 2016, nor have they supervised their management. Leave alone anything on good governance, what kind of control will it have over the management if it has not visited these temples even once in five years ?”, asked Advocate Virendra Ichalkaranjikar (National President of Hindu Vidhidnya Parishad) from the State Government.

सुव्यवस्थापन के नाम पर किए जा रहे ‘मंदिर सरकारीकरण’ का भांडाफोड !

तुळजापुर और शनिशिंगणापुर देवस्थानों की ओर सरकार ने ५ वर्ष देखा ही नहीं ! – हिन्दू विधिज्ञ परिषद @ssvirendra @abpmajhatv @zee24taasnews @mataonline @LoksattaLive #FreeHinduTemples pic.twitter.com/np34wHO3Zw

— HinduJagrutiOrg (@HinduJagrutiOrg) October 30, 2021

This shocking information was obtained under ‘Right to Information’ Act. The RTI asked the Law and Justice Department of Maharashtra Government to provide copies of documents on the visits of the State Government employees to these temples, instructions of the Department, reports prepared by the Department, follow up reports submitted by the temples based on the instructions, temples’ accounts/audit reports and the copy of clarifications given on the objections raised on the accounts, etc. The State Government replied in the negative. How can a secular Government take over places of Hindu worship ? Even if we keep aside this important and constantly discussed point, it has, however, been proved that the Government has completely failed in its duty even at the practical level.

Investigations into the scams related to the hundred crore throne at Shri Tuljabhavani Temple, scam related to 267 acres of temple land, etc. were handed over to the National Investigation Agency and its report was submitted to the Home Department in 2017; but the opposers in the Government are not letting the report become public.

As regards Shanishingnapur Temple, it was alleged that huge advertisements of political leaders were financed under political pressure or funds from this Temple. What happened after these allegations ? Once a temple is taken over by the Government, the accounts are to be audited and the reports are to be sent to the Law and Justice Department; but from the replies received from the Government, nothing of this seems to be happening. On one hand, the State Government is unable to run its own companies, incurring losses, and the companies have to be sold; then, on what basis, it is promising devotees of proper management of temples ? In fact, Hindus should take the Government and its concerned officers to task.