JUDGMENT :

P.G.Ajithkumar, J.

The petitioners claiming to be devotees of Sree Devi Bhuvaneswari of Manakkattu Devi Temple, Pallipad filed this Writ Petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India seeking a writ of mandamus commanding the 1st respondent to assume the management of the said Temple under the provisions of Section 37 of the Travancore Cochin Hindu Religious Institutions Act, 1950 (for short “the Act”). A direction to conduct an enquiry as envisaged under Section 38 of the Act, in prelude to such assumption is also sought for.

2. The petitioners would contend that the Temple was included as Sl.No.381 in the list of grant-in-aid Temples administered by the then Rulers of Travancore and therefore it should have been included in the list of incorporated Devaswoms contained in Annexure-I of the Act. Accidentally it was omitted. Now, the Temple is being administered by a Devaswom Bharana Samithy. There occurred repeated instances of mismanagement in the affairs of the Temple. Assets of the Temple, including Thiruvabharanam, were misappropriated by the persons in the helm of affairs of the Temple. A crime was also registered regarding the loss of Thiruvabharanam of the D