Early Times Report
JAMMU, Nov 27: Taking serious note of prolonged mismanagement and alleged exploitation of temple property, the High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh today ordered takeover of the Dewan Mandir, Pacca Danga, by appointing a Commissioner-cum-Receiver for complete administration of the shrine and its assets. Justice Rahul Bharti, while pronouncing the order in OWP No. 166/2006 titled Mandir Laxmi Narayan Ji Maharaj and another vs State of J&K and others, observed that the Deity, being a "perpetual minor in law", is entitled to full judicial protection where temple affairs have failed to safeguard its interest.
Justice Rahul Bharti recorded that large portions of the temple premises had been lost to commercial, business and even residential use over the years, attributing the condition to absence of an effective management mechanism and internal disputes among successors of the original mohtamim/pujari. It further noted that the litigation had revolved around individual claims over offerings and compensation rather than the welfare and development of the temple itself.
Recalling the earlier direction from 2006, the Court said that the Jammu Development Authority (JDA) had deposited Rs 1,00,17,282 with the Registry - including Rs 48 lakh as compensation for 6 kanals of temple land acquired for the Kacchi Chawni parking project and ?52.17 lakh as interest - and made it clear that no claimant to the seat of mohtamimship or pujariship is entitled to even a single rupee from the amount, which belongs exclusively to the Deity and must be spent on the development, maintenance and restoration of Dewan Mandir.
The Court has appointed Suresh Sharma (District & Sessions Judge, Retd.) as Commissioner-cum-Receiver with full authority to run day-to-day affairs of the temple, utilize the compensation corpus and subsequent interest for upkeep of the premises, maintain accounts of offerings and donations, and take steps to recover temple land from unauthorized occupants wherever found. It further directed authorities including JDA, Jammu Municipal Corporation, Deputy Commissioner Jammu and SSP Jammu to provide full cooperation to the Receiver, cautioning that any non-compliance shall be treated as interference in the administration of justice.
The Commissioner-cum-Receiver has been asked to conduct a complete survey of temple property and file a detailed report within one month. The matter has been listed again for December 30, 2025 for further consideration.
(JNF) |
