The Madras High Court on 8 April 2026, heard W.P. No. 12656 of 2026 filed by P. Bhaskar, seeking to quash the DMK government order G.O.(D) No.15 dated 14 January 2026, by which a ‘Fit Person’ (Thakkar) was appointed for the Arulmighu Masani Amman Temple in Pollachi, and to restrain authorities from operating or breaking the temple’s fixed deposit.
The matter was listed as Item No. 4 for admission before the First Bench comprising Chief Justice Sushrut Arvind Dharmadhikari and Justice G. Arul Murugan.
Appearing for the petitioner, Senior Advocate B. Jagannath argued that the Masani Amman Temple is a major and prominent temple with fixed deposits exceeding Rs.120 crore, and that the appointment of a Fit Person violates Sections 46, 47 and related provisions of the Tamil Nadu Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments (HR&CE) Act. He submitted that despite a public notification issued in March 2025 calling for applications for appointment of trustees, no trustees have been appointed even after one year.
The petitioner contended that the Fit Person, appointed as the fifth respondent, is only a temporary arrangement and cannot take major policy decisions, particularly in the absence of a duly constituted Board of Trustees. It was argued that without trustees, decisions involving temple funds including fixed deposits cannot be legally undertaken.
The petitioner further raised apprehensions regarding the temple’s fixed deposits, stating that in the previous year, an attempt had allegedly been made to break the fixed deposit for a luxury resort project in Ooty, which was dropped following intervention. It was submitted that similar risks persist in the absence of trustees.
During the hearing, the Bench questioned the respondents on why trustees had not been appointed for over a year and sought an explanation for appointing a Fit Person in 2026 despite the delay.
Responding to these submissions, Senior Advocate R. Shanmugasundaram, appearing for the respondents and assisted by R. Bharanidharan, submitted that the appointment of the Fit Person is only a temporary, stop-gap arrangement. He stated that there is no current proposal to break the temple’s fixed deposit and that the earlier luxury resort proposal had already been dropped.
The respondents further submitted that applications received for trustee appointments have been scrutinised and that certain candidates have been identified. It was stated that the process of appointing trustees would be completed promptly after the elections.
According to the respondents, the petitioner’s apprehensions regarding misuse of funds were unfounded, and the Fit Person’s role is limited to interim administration until trustees are appointed.
The Court, after hearing both sides, noted that applications for trustee positions had already been invited and were under scrutiny. The Bench disposed of the writ petition with a direction to the authorities to expedite the appointment of regular trustees and ensure that provisions of the HR&CE Act are strictly followed before taking any decision regarding utilisation of temple funds.
The Court also observed that apprehensions regarding misuse of temple funds, including fixed deposits of around Rs.100 crore, could not be entertained in the absence of material evidence, but allowed the petitioner to approach authorities in case of any violation.
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