Newly-appointed chief minister of Uttarakhand Tirath Singh Rawat has announced to free 51 Hindu temples in the state from government control. This announcement overturns the decision of the former chief minister Trivendra Singh Rawat-led government.
Former chief minister Trivendra Singh Rawat had enacted the Char Dham Shrine Management Board Act 2019 to oversee the management of Hindu temples.
The decision to free the temples from government control came after priests and hermits associated with the temples protested the state-takeover.
As many as 51 shrines, including Badrinath, Kedarnath, Yamunotri and Gangotri, were under the direct control of the state government after Governor Baby Rani Maurya gave her assent to the Char Dham Shrine Management Bill that was passed during the winter session of the Assembly.
Then chief minister Trivendra Singh Rawat had said the new act will help in the “professional” management of the shrines that are visited by lakhs of people every year. In 2019, over three million people visited the four shrines in the hill state.
According to the act, the chief minister would be the board’s president, while a senior officer of the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) will become the chief executive officer.
There was widespread resentment ever since the government decided to introduce the bill. Several priests feared the new system would curtail their role and duties which they and their families have been engaged with for decades. The priests argue that these temples were set up by their ancestors and they have been managing their affairs for generations. The priests and local devotees also anticipated the subsequent interference in temple rituals and traditions by the state government. There were also aspersions on how the Uttarakhand government would spend the income generated from the Hindu temples.
Priests, hermits and godmen had been opposing the government’s move to take over the management of the temples for several months. Several of them even marched to the Vidhan Sabha to protest against the government, arguing that the move is an interference in the belief of Hindus.
The matter also reached the Uttarakhand High Court, but the court ruled that the law was constitutional.
State Congress president Pritam Singh had earlier said that if his party is voted to power in Uttarakhand, the Act would be revoked. Elections to the state legislative assembly are scheduled to be held in 2022.
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