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The purpose of religious endowments was not welfare of temple through people, but welfare of the people through temple. Such welfare could be religious, spiritual, cultural, social or economic: Justice A.R. Masoodi 

Tabling an important judgment, the Lucknow bench of Allahabad High Court on Thursday approved the new scheme of management for Aliganj Mahabirji Trust (Lucknow) in order to run the city’s famous Lord Hanuman temple at Aliganj.

Observing that “the purpose of religious endowments was not welfare of temple through people, but welfare of the people through temple,” the bench of Justice A.R. Masoodi also appointed a 3-member committee for drawing a list of 11 trustees to take over the management of the Trust.

The committee comprising three retired high court judges, Justice Kamleshwar Nath, Justice S.V.S. Rathore and Justice Rekha Dixit will select the trustees from amongst the respectable Hindus living in Lucknow preferably within two months to occupy the offices specified in the scheme of management drafted by Justice Nath in 2021.

After 102 years since the framing of a scheme of management for the Trust, Justice Nath had drafted a new scheme in June 2021 in order to finalise the disputes regarding the management of the trust. 

The dispute

In 1920, the temple came to be regulated as a public religious charitable Trust, and a scheme of management was framed under the judgment in Gauri Nath Kakaji and others vs Ram Narain and others (1920).

However, the same became in-operative due to lack of any legitimate succession. Resultantly, various disputes arose regarding the management of the affairs of the trust.

Later on, after various rounds of litigation between the contesting parties, the matter ultimately reached to the High Court, which looking to the fact that the Trust in question was a public charitable and religious Trust went ahead to constitute a five-member committee in the year 2017 for conducting the day-to-day affairs of the Trust.

The high court had also appointed an advisory committee of eminent persons to aid the functioning of the five-member committee. Both the committees are taking care of the Trust affairs as of now.

Finally, in its endeavour to finalize a scheme of management, in March 2021, the high court nominated Justice Nath to draft a scheme of management, which has been now approved through the present order.

Further, the court has directed the interim 5-member executive committee to hand over complete charge of the record and properties, movable or immovable of the trust to the new committee within a period of three months from the date of publication of the management Scheme.

Case Title: Aliganj Sri Mahaveer Ji Trust v. The District Judge, Lucknow And Ors