‘Temple wealth belongs to deity’
The report of the amicus curiae on Sree Padmanabha Swamy temple treasure submitted to the apex court states that both the Kerala government and His Highness Marthanda Varma, the sole trustee of the temple, are of the view that all the valuables found in the vaults of the temple belong to the deity.
The amicus curiae, former Solicitor General of India Gopal Subramaniam, quotes the affidavits filed by both the state government and the executive officer incorporating the views of His Highness Marthanda Varma, the sole trustee of the temple.
The Kerala government in its affidavit dated July 21, 2011, stated that “All articles found in the vaults of Sree Padmanabha Swamy temple including, gold ornaments, precious stones and antiques belong to the deity and neither the state government nor the family of ex-rulers of Travancore can have any claim over them.”
And, the affidavit dated July 14, 2011 filed by the executive officer of the temple incorporating the views of His Highness Marthanda Varma, says, “All articles, ornaments, valuables, precious stones, antiques without exception found in the temple vaults belong to the presiding deity and neither Marthanda Varma nor his family members has any claim over them. Marthanda Varma merely administers the assets of the deity and the temple as a trustee.
“The ornaments/antiques are not suitable or sufficient for creating a separate museum. All the articles being the property of the temple, should remain within the confines of the temple premises. It is neither practical nor advisable to remove them from the temple environs’ security,” the affidavit added.
How much importance is being given to the security of the temple is evident from the affidavit of the state government. It says,“A senior officer of the rank of Additional Director-General of Police has been put in charge of the security of the temple. A control room has been made operational. A special team of police officers has been entrusted with the task of studying the security requirements. Ensuring adequate security for the temple is the primary responsibility of the government and it will do everything necessary for acquisition of the state-of-the art security systems (which are least obtrusive and most effective). The temple will be guarded round-the-clock. Commandos have been posted to guard the gates.”