SC hands back control of temple with Rs 1-trillion treasures to ex-royals

The Supreme Court (SC) on Monday ruled in favour of the erstwhile Travancore royal family, giving them the right to control and administer the Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple in Thiruvananthapuram. One of the richest temples in the country, it attracted global attention after treasures running into thousands of crores were discovered inside the temple. Some estimates peg the valuables’ worth at Rs 1 trillion.

The apex court on Monday set aside a 2011 order of the Kerala High Court (HC), which had asked the state government to take over the control of the temple from a trust headed by the former royals.

That same year, the SC had stayed the HC ruling and ordered a detailed inventory of the valuables in the various the vaults of the temple. Of the six vaults, one — Vault B — could not be opened after the SC had kept the matter in abeyance.

In 2014, the apex court through an interim order handed over the day-to-day management of the temple to a four-member administrative committee headed by a district judge. The SC on Monday said the committee would continue till a new panel is formed by the former royals. There is no clarity yet on who will be part of the new committee and whether the secret vault will be opened.

The royals and believers have in the past expressed their displeasure with opening Vault B. “We had an astrological assessment regarding whether the vault can be opened. We were advised against it by the temple astrologers and the priest. Vault B has two rooms, the antechamber has been opened many times,” said Aditya Varma, member of the erstwhile royal family.

The former royals are happy with the ruling, said Varma, while refusing to comment on the new committee as the family hasn’t got the full verdict.

The Kerala government also welcomed the ruling, with minister Kadakampally Surendran saying: “We have always followed the apex court order in letter and spirit”.