G Sreedathan: Royal mess at Padmanabhaswamy temple

The Supreme Court amicus curiae's report blows the lid off pilferage from the temple's treasure trove

Even as the country is in the grip of election fever, God's Own Country is caught up in an unholy controversy surrounding one of the wealthiest temples in the world - the Sree Padmanabhaswamy temple in Thiruvananthapuram.

Three years ago, the temple, controlled by the erstwhile Travancore royal family, received international attention after wealth worth about Rs 1,00,000 crore was discovered in its treasure vaults. The world hailed the royal family's integrity for preserving the wealth through centuries.

But sensational accounts of pilferage of the wealth by members of temple administration in a report by the Supreme Court's amicus curiae Gopal Subramaniam shocked many who considered the royal family to be above suspicion. The court had appointed the amicus curiae to examine how the temple and its properties were managed.

According to a person close to the royal family, though pilferage did take place, those responsible were officials.

In his 500-page report, the amicus curiae also hinted at attempts to ship out a certain quantity of the temple gold, allegedly in connivance with the management. "There was failure on the part of the temple management to account effectively for the offerings, whether in cash/currency/gold/silver ornaments. The auditors of the temple have failed in performing their ethical duties," the report said.

While accepting the report, a Supreme Court Bench comprising judges R M Lodha and A K Patnaik ordered the appointment of a five-member committee headed by the Thiruvananthapuram district judge to manage the temple, removing the royal family's control over the 18th century temple. The royal family will, however, continue to enjoy certain ritualistic rights.

The court Bench said former Comptroller and Auditor General Vinod Rai would undertake the audit of the temple properties, assets and accounts. It appointed K N Satheesh, senior Indian Administrative Service officer and former administrator of Guruvayoor temple, as Padmanabhaswamy temple's executive officer.

Given the public's favourable sentiment towards the royal family, political parties, except the Left ones, reacted cautiously. Chief Minister Oommen Chandy criticised the tendency of certain quarters to run down the royal family. He said the fact that huge treasures had been preserved for centuries was proof of the family's faith and commitment.

Though the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) welcomed the apex court's intervention, it did not approve keeping the royal family completely out of the temple management. State BJP president V Muraleedharan asked the court not to involve the state government in the affairs of the temple, saying the government was only interested in the wealth.

Opposition leader V S Achuthanandan said the apex court's interim order was a blow to the royal family and its supporters in the government.

The case so far
Lord Padmanambha (Vishnu) is the family deity of the royal family of Travancore, whose princes ruled the state as 'Padmanabha dasa (servants of Padmanabha)'. Though the Travancore state acceded to the Indian state in 1947, ending the rule of kings, as a special case, the family was allowed to retain the administration of the temple.

In 2007, two devotees moved court, seeking to restrain the temple authorities from opening vaults and photographing the treasures for an album. The court, while restraining the management in this regard, also set up a two-member team to open a chamber containing jewels and utensils required for festivals and other rituals.

Later, challenging the royals' authority, another devotee, T P Sundararajan (a former Indian Police Service officer), approached the Kerala High Court, seeking transparency in the temple's administration. The petitioner's stand was endorsed by the high court, which suggested the temple be brought under a trust. This was challenged by the royal family in the Supreme Court. The case is pending.

Future course
Though the five-member committee will manage the temple for now, it is unclear whether this will be a permanent arrangement. A debate has been raging over how the temple should be run. It is widely appreciated that the apex court did not hand over the temple administration to the Kerala government, though it had told the court "as a representative of the people, (it) could not be shut out of temple affairs".

Devotees feel a foolproof system should be in place to manage the temple. "The administration should have persons of impeccable integrity, not politicians. Also, the royal family members could be members of the management," noted scholar M G Sasi Bhushan told Business Standard.

The Padmanabhaswamy temple and its treasures are part of India's rich heritage. It is the duty of the judiciary and the government to ensure these are properly managed and protected. But experts say, it's not the duty of the government or the judiciary to run temples, mosques or churches. In the interest of secularism, let devotees take care of their places of worship.