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IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT MADRAS
Honourable Mr Justice D. BHARATHA CHAKRAVARTHY
T.S. Sankar – Appellant
Versus
Chief Additional Secretary, Government of Tamilnadu, Secretariat, Fort St.George, Chennai – Respondent
ORDER :
(D. BHARATHA CHAKRAVARTHY, J.)
Arulmigu Arunachaleswarar Temple is one of the most important Hindu temples in our nation and is among the largest temples in India. Lord Siva is worshipped as Arunachaleswarar or Annamalaiyar. The temple is a ‘paadal petra sthalam’. The deity’s praise is sung repeatedly in the Tamil Bhakthi Literature, ‘Thevaram’, which was written in or about the the 7th century. It is also stated that in the 9th century, Saiva Saint Poet Manikavasagar composed the entire Thiruvempavai in the said temple. The Karthigai Deepam festival, celebrated on the full moon day, is also special to the temple. The Arunachala Hill, at the base of which the temple is located and the entire township itself is considered sacred, and millions of people visit the temple and undertake Girivalam. We are concerned with the matters regarding the said temple and certain specific endowments associated with it in these Writ Petitions.
2. These two writ petitions relate to the Arulmighu Arunachaleswarar Temple in Thiruvannamalai. As the arguments overlap and pertain to different aspects of the same temple, the matters are disposed of through this common order.
A) W.P. No. 32503 of 2024:
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Trusteeship disqualification arises under Section 26(1-A) for any individual with a subsisting lease on property of a religious endowment, ensuring integrity of temple management.
The court ruled that a petitioner lacks standing to contest administrative exemptions under the Endowments Act if they have no defined legal rights over the subject property.
The court held that hereditary rights to temple administration supersede unilateral executive appointments when trusteeship disputes are pending, emphasizing adherence to statutory requirements and p....
The duty of the Executive Officer to protect the temple's property and the entitlement of the temple in case of mismanagement were central legal principles established in the judgment.
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