Tirupati Laddu controversy: Using Pawan Kalyan’s demands as an excuse, understand why the Sanatan Dharma Raksha Board became necessary.

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu has alleged that animal fat was mixed into the ghee used to prepare the famous Tirumala Laddu during the tenure of the previous YSRCP government led by YS Jagan Mohan Reddy. While the YSRCP has denied the allegations, an investigation report has corroborated the facts. The then CM Jaganmohan might not have been aware of the adulteration but since he was a follower of Christianity, Hindu organisations certainly had a chance. Andhra Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan has expressed displeasure over the evil ingredient used in the laddu prasad of the Sri Venkateswara Temple in Tirupati. Kalyan on Friday said it was time to immediately set up a ‘Sanatan Dharma Committee’ at the state level to consider all issues related to the temple across India.

Pawan Kalyan wrote on the social media site that it is time to immediately set up a ‘Sanatan Dharma Raksha Board’ at the national level to consider all issues related to temples across India. All policymakers, religious leaders, judiciary, common citizens, media and all other stalwarts in their respective fields should engage in a meaningful debate at the national level. It is not clear what rights Kalyan will be given regarding the Sanatan Dharma Board they have demanded to be set up at the national level. But based on the demands made so far, it seems that the board will be a step towards freeing Hindu temples from government interference.

Pawan Kalyan is not the first to make such a demand. Even before this, there were demands to keep Hindu temples free from government interference. In fact, in India, the government has no control over mosques, dargahs and churches, but it has control over ashrams, temples and gurus. This is the problem that has been bothering Hindus.

In this regard, Supreme Court lawyer Ashwini Upadhyay has filed a petition in the Supreme Court seeking to free temples and monasteries from government control. In his petition, he said that in a secular country, when the constitution prohibits any form of religious discrimination, why should there be discrimination in the management of places of worship? The petition demands that just as Muslims and Christians manage their religious places and places of worship without government interference, Hindus should also have the right to manage and govern their religious institutions.

It is estimated that around 400,000 temples in 15 states across the country are directly or indirectly under government control. The Supreme Court has repeatedly called the government’s occupation of Hindu temples unfair. In 2019, in the Jagannath Temple case in Puri, Justice (retired) Bobde had said, “I don’t understand why government officials should manage this temple?” He cited the example of Tamil Nadu, where there were several thefts of priceless idols during government control. Jaggi Vasudev, in one of his articles, quoted some police books saying that thousands of idols were stolen from temples in Tamil Nadu and duplicate idols were secretly installed. Hindu organizations believe that the reason for this is that believers do not have the right to run their temples. In 2014, the Supreme Court ordered the release of the famous Nataraja temple in Tamil Nadu from government control, but thousands of temples are still under government control.

India got independence in 1947 and we had a constitution in 1950. According to Article 26 of the constitution, the government cannot interfere with the religious practices of any religion. According to this article, Hindus got back their temples. But in 1951, the then Congress government passed the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Act, 1951. After the enactment of this act, states had the right to bring any temple under their control. However, the act did not give the right to take over mosques and churches. With the help of this act, the state government could appoint anyone of any religion as the administrator, chairman or manager.

At present, the Sanatan Dharma Raksha Board should at least be given the same rights as the Shiromani Gurdwara Management Committee. However, Sikhs also do not enjoy religious rights like Christians and Muslims in the country. We can still see a comparative example. Vasudev Jaggi Maharaj writes that the Tamil Nadu government has 44,000 temples under its jurisdiction, covering more than 500,000 acres of land. But the total annual revenue of these projects is only Rs 128 crore. In contrast, the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee has 85 Gurdwaras, but its budget is over Rs 1,000 crore. The revenue of only Rs 128 crore for 44,000 temples covering 87% of the population reflects poor management.