On 26 August 2025, the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court invalidated a series of Government Orders that had sanctioned the construction of wedding halls using surplus funds from temples across various regions.
Earlier, during the state Budget session, Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments (HR&CE) Minister P.K. Sekarbabu had informed the Assembly of a proposal to allocate ₹80 crore from the excess funds of 27 temples for the purpose of building community wedding halls. These venues were intended to be rented out for public use.
However, a Division Bench comprising Justices S.M. Subramaniam and G. Arul Murugan found the initiative to be inconsistent with the fundamental principles of Hindu charitable traditions. The court observed that the plan lacked a charitable component and, as such, could not be considered a “religious purpose” under the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Act. Consequently, the Government Orders lost their legal standing.
The judges emphasized that temple assets both monetary and property are offered by devotees with religious intent and must be utilized strictly for temple-related needs such as maintenance, spiritual activities, and development.
The bench said, “It is unambiguous that the role of the Government in controlling the affairs of the Hindu temples across the State of Tamil Nadu under the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Act is limited only to prevent, abuse, misutilization or misappropriation of temple funds and its properties. It is the duty of the Government to ensure that temple funds are utilized only for religious purposes as intended by the donors/devotees and under the provisions of the Act and Rules framed thereunder.”
The government, the court held, has no legal authority to divert these resources toward secular or commercial projects.
The Bench underscored that such funds are considered the legal property of the presiding deity of the temple. In legal terms, deities are regarded as minors, and it is the responsibility of the judiciary to act as the guardian of their interests. Thus, the court deemed it essential to protect temple resources from being misappropriated.
In its ruling, the court declared that constructing wedding halls for rent does not fulfill any religious or spiritual objective. As a result, the initiative was found to be in violation of the HR&CE Act and its associated regulations.
The Hon'ble Division Bench of Hon. Justice Shri S M Subramaniam and Hon. Justice Shri Arul Murugan in Madras High Court (Madurai Bench) has quashed 5 Government Orders issued by Tamil Nadu Govt approving construction of commercial Wedding Halls using Temple lands and funds.… pic.twitter.com/TuANj3WwxD
— trramesh (@trramesh) August 27, 2025
Based on these findings, the court accepted the group of petitions challenging the government’s decision and officially struck down the related Government Orders.
(With inputs from South First)
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