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The Supreme Court today upheld the right of the Travancore royal family to management and control of the Padmanabhaswamy Temple in Kerala.
The order was passed by a Bench of Justices UU Lalit and Indu Malhotra.
The verdict was on the dispute on whether the control of the Padmanabhaswamy Temple in Kerala will vest with the state government or the Travancore royal family.
Today, the Bench held that the death of the King of Travancore, who signed the covenant, does not affect Shebaitship (management and maintenance of the idol) of the Travancore royal family. The Court ruled,
We hold that the death of Sree Chithira Thirunal Balarama Varma who had signed the Covenant, would not in any way affect the Shebaitship of the Temple held by the royal family of Travancore; that after such death, the Shebaitship must devolve in accordance with the applicable law and custom upon his successor; that the expression “Ruler of Travancore” as appearing in Chapter III of Part I of the TC Act must include his natural successors according to law and custom; and that the Shebaitship did not lapse in favour of the State by principle of escheat
reads the SC verdict
"We allow the appeal of the royal family of Travancore. Death does not effect Shebaitship of the Travancore Family."
Supreme Court
The Court thus gave the nod for the constitution of an administrative committee, which will manage the affairs of the Temple. The District judge of Thiruvananthapuram will be the Chairperson of this committee.
It was further specified that all members of the Padmanabhaswamy Temple committee will be Hindus.
The Temple was controlled by a trust headed by the Travancore royal family until April 2014, when the Supreme Court by an interim order, directed its management to be taken care of by a four-member administrative committee headed by a district judge.
The Bench today held that this interim arrangement would continue until the committee is constituted.
On the question of 'Vault B' of the Temple should be opened, the Court stated that the same would be decided by the committee.
The appeals before the Supreme Court were filed against a 2011 Kerala High Court judgment directing the state government to take over control of the Sri Padmanabhaswamy Temple, its assets and management. The matter was pending for over nine years.
The Kerala High Court Bench of Justices CN Ramachandran Nair and K Surendra Mohan had ruled that the state government should take over the control of the temple from a trust headed by the royal family.
The High Court had also directed the government to open all Kallaras (vaults), make inventory of the entire articles, and create a museum to exhibit all the treasures of the Temple for the public, devotees and the tourists. Viewing of the same could be arranged for on a payment basis in the Temple premises itself, the Court had ordered.
On appeal against this verdict, the Supreme Court in May 2011 ordered a detailed inventory of the articles at the Temple, including the vaults, which had long rumoured to be holding immense riches.
When five of the Temple's six vaults were opened after the Supreme Court order, a vast treasure of gold and other priceless objects was discovered. It was estimated that the intrinsic value of the treasure amounted to more than Rs. 90,000 crore. One of the vaults, Kallara B, could not be opened. The opening of the same was later kept in abeyance by the Apex Court.
Senior Advocate Gopal Subramanian was appointed as amicus curiae in the matter. Former CAG Vinod Rai was also appointed to audit the records, including expenditures incurred for the Temple's maintenance.
The case has its roots in 2009, when TP Sundarrajan, a former IPS officer, filed a public interest litigation petition before the Kerala high court praying that the control of the Temple should be handed from the royal family to the state government.
The court has ruled that the newly formed Administrative Committee and the Advisory Committee shall do well to discharge all their functions including the "performance of the worship of the deity, maintenance of its properties, diligently and in the best interest of the Temple, and provide adequate and requisite facilities to the worshippers."
"Preserve all treasures and properties endowed to Shri Padmanabhaswamy and those belonging to the Temple. All the income accruing to the Temple, as well as the offerings made by the worshippers, shall be expended in the following manner: (i) To improve the facilities for the worshippers; and (ii) For such religious and charitable purposes as the Advisory Committee may deem appropriate," reads the verdict.
The primary legal document before the Apex Court was the agreement of accession (agreement) signed between the Kings of Travancore and the Government of India in 1949, by which the princely state of Travancore became a part of the Indian Union.
Article VII of the agreement provided that administration of the Padmanabhaswamy Temple shall be conducted, subject to the control and supervision of the ruler of Travancore, by an executive officer appointed by the ruler.
The ruler at the time of Independence, Chithira Thirunal Balarama Varma, passed away in 1991 and Utharadom Thirunal Marthanda Varma assumed charge as trustee of the Temple. The latter had approached the Supreme Court in appeal against the Kerala High Court order.
[READ JUDGMENT]