"Cannot regulate who enters a temple", Supreme Court on plea against 'VIP Darshan' at Ujjain's Mahakaleshwar Temple

The Supreme Court today allowed withdrawal of a petition filed before it challenging the “VIP Darshan” culture at the Shri Mahakaleshwar temple in Ujjain.

A CJI Surya Kant led bench allowed Advocate Vishnu Shankar Jain to withdraw the plea stating that the temple’s managing committee, constituted under the Shri Mahakaleshwar Adhiniyam, 1982, has no statutory authority to create a separate class of “VIP” devotees.

Court was told today that allowing persons in the garba griha of the temple should be based on a uniform policy and not on the basis of their VIP status. To this the CJI said, "We cannot regulate who is allowed inside the temple and who is not allowed inside..this is for the authority to decide."

The bench also comprising Justices Mahadevan and Joymalya Bagchi asked the petitioner to approach the authority.

Filed by one Darpan Awasthi, the petition assails the practice of allowing select devotees to enter the sanctum sanctorum or garbhagriha for performing rituals, while denying the same access to ordinary devotees.

The petition challenged the judgment of the Madhya Pradesh High Court, which dismissed a public interest litigation seeking equal access for all devotees to perform darshan and rituals inside the sanctum. A bench of Justice Vivek Rusia and Justice Binod Kumar Dwivedi held that the petition was not maintainable, as the categorisation of visitors as “VIPs” lies purely within the discretion of the District Collector and the Administrator of the Temple Management Committee, and could not be interfered with in writ proceedings.

"On a particular day, looking to the status of the person, the Collector shall be the competent authority to treat him as VIP for the purpose of offering water to the deity. There is no permanent list or protocol published by the Managing Committee. Hence, the writ court cannot decide as to who is VIP", High court had said.

Awasthi had cited several examples of alleged preferential access before the High Court like, BJP State Organisation In-charge Mahendra Singh, his family, and staff being allowed into the sanctum, BJP MLA Anil Jain Kaluheda and the president of the BJP Ujjain Sarafa Mandal being permitted entry and the Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh, along with his family and staff allowed Garbhagriha access.

Notably, Supreme Court had recently expressed its views on the darshan timings issue at the Banke Bihari Temple and said, "What they do is they have hours when so called affluent people can perform poojas..". It had also issued notice on a petition filed by the Management Committee of Thakur Shree Bankey Bihari Ji Maharaj Temple raising certain issues pertaining to the working of the temple.

Case Title: Darpan Awasthi vs. State of Madhya Pradesh

Bench: CJI Kant, Justice Mahadevan and Justice Bagchi

Hearing Date: January 27, 2026