MADURAI: The Madurai Bench of Madras High Court recently dismissed a PIL that sought a direction against observing former Chief Minister CN Annadurai’s anniversary in Hindu temples by offering annadhanam and distributing free dhotis and sarees using temple funds.
The litigant, Periyanambi Narasimha Gopalan of Tirunelveli, alleged that substantial amounts from temple funds are spent every year for such events. He claimed that this is impermissible under Section 10 of the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Act, 1959, which mandates that temple funds be utilised strictly for Hindu religious purposes.
He added that Annadurai was an avowed atheist and a non-Hindu, who criticised Hindu religion, temples, and idol worship in his works, namely ‘Arya Mayai’ and ‘Thee Paravattum’. Therefore, he contended that observing his anniversary inside temple premises using temple funds is contrary to both tenets of Hindu religion and the intent of the governing statute.
However, a bench of justices N Sathish Kumar and M Jothiraman observed that the HR&CE Act empowered the trustee of a religious institution to utilise surplus funds for charitable purposes.
Moreover, the government has taken a policy decision to promote social welfare and remove caste-based discrimination by encouraging participation of marginalised sections in temple-related activities, they noted. Noting that materials on record indicate that the funds are utilised solely for feeding the poor within temple premises, they dismissed the PIL.