Sabrimala hearing at Supreme Court: Govt does not favour state control of temples; Centre tells 9-judge bench led by CJI

The central government on Tuesday, 21st April, told the Supreme Court that it does not support government control over temples. The statement comes at a time when thousands of temples across India are managed by state-run Devaswom Boards. It was made during an important hearing on the issue of faith versus fundamental rights before a nine-judge Constitution bench led by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant.

Debate over constitutional interpretation

During the hearing, senior advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan argued that Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the Centre, and senior advocate A M Singhvi, appearing for the Travancore Devaswom Board, had given an interpretation of Articles 25 and 26 that seemed to justify government control over temples.

Responding to this, Mehta clarified that his earlier remarks were being misunderstood. He told the court, “Government does not want to control the temples at all,” and added that his arguments were only about explaining the Constitution. He said Article 25 allows the state to regulate economic, political, and other non-religious activities of religious institutions.

Justice Amanullah asked whether this position applied only to Hindu institutions. Mehta responded that constitutional discussions should not be seen through the lens of any one religion. He stressed that the law applies equally to all religions, whether Hindu, Muslim, Christian, or others.

Justice Bagchi added that such interpretations should be viewed from the perspective of citizens, not religions. Mehta agreed and said he had only tried to highlight the diversity across different faiths in India.

Temple management across states

The issue is significant because many temples in India are currently managed by government-linked bodies. In Kerala, boards like the Travancore Devaswom Board and others oversee around 3,000 temples, including the famous Sabarimala Ayyappa Temple.

In Tamil Nadu, the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Department manages more than 30,000 temples. Similarly, the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams looks after the Tirupati Balaji Temple, while Uttarakhand’s Char Dham Board manages shrines like Badrinath Temple and Kedarnath Temple.