Latest news with #EndowmentsAct
Hans India
13-07-2025
- Politics
- Hans India
Endowments Dept to get 9% of TTD's Common Good Fund
Tirupati: The Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) and the Endowments Department have agreed to increase the contribution from the Common Good Fund (CGF) to the Endowments Department from the existing five per cent to nine per cent towards strengthening temple infrastructure and increasing priest welfare across the State. This decision was taken during a high-level meeting held at Annamayya Bhavan in Tirumala on Saturday. The meeting was convened following the directions of Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, who wanted certain issues that had come to the fore in recent times to be resolved. Senior officials discussed at length the facilities that need to be improved across temples in the state, including Tirumala, and addressed pending matters between the Endowments department and the TTD. The meeting was attended by Endowments Minister Anam Ramnarayan Reddy, TTD Chairman BR Naidu, TTD Executive Officer J Syamala Rao, Endowments Secretary V Vinay Chand, TTD Additional EO Ch Venkaiah Chowdary, JEO V Veerabrahmam, and other officials from TTD and the Endowments Department. Speaking to the media after the meeting, Minister Anam stated that under the Endowments Act, there were provisions requiring the TTD to contribute up to nine per cent of its funds to the Common Good Fund. Until now, this contribution has been only five per cent. The board has decided to increase it in line with the provision. Anam explained that the state government, in keeping with its manifesto promise, wanted to provide financial support to unemployed priests across the State. As many as 590 unemployed Vedic scholars had been identified, and the government had decided to provide them with a monthly honorarium of Rs 3,000, he said. On temple renovation, he said that Rs 147 crore had previously been sanctioned from the Srivani Trust funds for the reconstruction of temples across the state. However, that amount has remained unused. An additional Rs 11 crore was due to be released from the same trust. The board and officials discussed these pending amounts and agreed to take appropriate decisions soon.
Time of India
27-05-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
Temple land row should be resolved by endowments tribunal: HC
Hyderabad: Justice CV Bhaskar Reddy of the Telangana high court has held that it is the endowments tribunal—not the high court—that should adjudicate ownership claims when both the endowments department and private individuals, such as temple priests, assert title over the same land. The court directed Arutla Srinivasa Charyulu and Arutla Narasimha Charya, two priests from Odela village in Peddapalli district, to approach the endowments tribunal for relief in their dispute over more than 10 acres of land reportedly belonging to Sri Sitaramachandra Swamy temple and Sri Anjaneya Swamy temple. The ruling came as part of the disposal of a writ petition filed by the two petitioners, who claimed that the land in question was ancestral property passed down from their father, the late Narahara Charyulu. They argued that their family's traditional role as priests of the temples did not affect their rights as private landowners. In support of their claim, they cited their names—along with their late father's—being recorded as pattadars in revenue records, and the issuance of valid pattadar passbooks in 2018. The petitioners alleged that the revenue and endowments departments, without issuing notice or conducting any inquiry, had unilaterally replaced their names with that of the temple deities in official land records. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Foggia: L'ultima soluzione acustica svizzera: ingegnosa e quasi invisibile Migliora Udito Undo As a result, they claimed to have been denied agricultural benefits provided by the govt. Bhukya Mangilal Nayak, counsel for the govt and endowments department, refuted these claims. He argued that mere service as temple priests does not confer ownership rights over temple lands. According to the state, the disputed property has long been classified as temple land, and the petitioners had failed to contest this status for years. Moreover, the govt emphasised that the proper forum to resolve such disputes is the endowments tribunal, and not the high court under Article 226 of the Constitution. Agreeing with the state's contention, the court clarified that entries in revenue records such as pahanis do not establish ownership rights. They serve only for classification purposes and do not override the legal framework governing temple lands under the Telangana Charitable and Hindu Religious Institutions and Endowments Act, 1987, the court said. The high court concluded that the matter falls squarely within the scope of section 87 of the Endowments Act, and that the endowments tribunal is the appropriate authority to determine ownership and classification issues related to temple property. It further clarified that the tribunal's decision would be made independently, without being influenced by the observations of either the district collector or the high court.
New Indian Express
26-05-2025
- Politics
- New Indian Express
Lobbying delays formation of Yadadri temple board despite law being passed two months ago
YADADRI BHUVANAGIRI: After coming to power, the Congress government in Telangana decided to constitute a board for the Yadadrigutta Sri Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy temple, similar to the TTD board. Facilitating the decision, the Endowments Act was amended, and a new law was passed. Though it has been two months since the temple's trust board establishment bill was approved by the Assembly, the appointment of the board chairman and members has not yet progressed. It is believed that the delay in forming the Yadadri board is due to intense lobbying among top leaders from the undivided district, each pushing for their group to get representation. The proposed board will have 18 members, including a chairman, 11 governing body members, and six ex officio members. The term for the board will be two years. The government is planning to appoint industrialists with a service mindset, spiritual leaders, and experts from various fields. It also intends to include members from other states to boost the temple's national recognition. The previous board of trustees was formed in 2008 and operated until 2010. For the past 15 years, the temple has been functioning without a governing body. With the new decision to form a board, many individuals are now showing keen interest in becoming board members of the temple or chairman. These include Congress loyalists of the past decade, disappointed ticket aspirants, leaders who worked for MLA victories, those aiming for nominated posts, businessmen, NGO organisers, and eminent personalities from various fields. Intense lobbying and political pressure These aspirants are reportedly lobbying through their political connections to secure a spot on the board. Several leaders have allegedly already started exerting pressure on their seniors. Two ministers from the erstwhile Nalgonda district — N Uttam Kumar Reddy and Komatireddy Venkat Reddy — along with senior leader Jana Reddy and local MLA and government whip Beerla Ilaiah, are reportedly pushing for their own nominees to be appointed as chairman and board members.
New Indian Express
21-05-2025
- Politics
- New Indian Express
Telangana HC sets aside Endowments dept notice to Union Minister Bandi Sanjay
HYDERABAD: The Telangana High Court has allowed a writ petition by Union Minister Bandi Sanjay, setting aside a 2016 notice from the Endowments Department directing him to register the Mahashakti Temple in Chaitanyapuri under Section 43(1) of the Endowments Act. The court ruled that the absence of a hundi or puja charges does not make a temple private, and all Hindu public temples fall under Section 1(3)(b) of the Endowments Act, 1987. Authorities were directed to consider Sanjay's 2016 plea for exemption under Section 154 within three months. Sanjay claimed he built the temple in 2010 at a cost of Rs 2 crore with no revenue generated, and that maintenance is handled solely by his family. The court criticised officials for not evaluating the temple's income or acting on Sanjay's request for nine years.
Time of India
20-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
HC nixes endowments' notice to bring Sanjay's temple under its control
Hyderabad: In a relief to Union minister of state for home Bandi Sanjay Kumar , the Telangana high court has set aside the notice seeking to bring under the purview of the endowments department the Maha Shakti temple in Chaitanyapuri in Karimnagar, which is built and administered by the minister's family. Justice EV Venugopal gave three months to authorities to consider the representation of the Union minister seeking exemption from the law mandating registration of temples under the Endowments Act. However, while deeming the notice premature, the court clarified that petitioner's (Sanjay) claim of the temple being a private institution was not substantiated solely by the absence of hundis or fees. The notice was issued by the assistant commissioner of endowments department in July 2016, asking Sanjay to apply for registration of the temple with the department under sub-section (1) of section 43 of the Telangana Endowments Act. Once such an application is made, the temple would come under the regulatory control of the endowments department. This was resisted by Sanjay who argued that the temple was constructed in 2010 with his own money (Rs 2 crore) and managed under the spiritual guidance of Sri Hampi Virupaksha Vidyaranya Bharathi Swamiji of Karnataka. The petitioner (Sanjay) was appointed as the Swamiji's agent and 'Dharmakartha' to oversee the temple's activities. The Act allows exemption to temples run by Mutts. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Investigadora argentina revela hallazgos sobre el magnesio Salud Esencial Leer más Undo Sanjay also contended that it was a private temple which has no income, no donation boxes (hundis), did not collect fees for religious services and all maintenance/festival expenses are borne by his family. He argued that such a setup did not warrant registration under the Endowments Act, especially when an application seeking exemption under Section 154 of the Act was already pending. Sanjay also pointed out the department's earlier exemptions to several temples such as Sri Balaji Temple, Chilkur village; Sri Subramanya Swamy Temple at Skandagiri, Secunderabad; Sri Jagdeesh Mandir, Lower Tank Bund, Hyderabad; and Sri Anjaneya Swamy Temple, Tadbund etc. The endowments department, in its counter-affidavit, argued that Sanjay's temple was a public religious institution open to all devotees and therefore fell under the scope of the Act. They rejected the temple's private status and said mere absence of hundis or fees did not exempt it from registration. The officials pointed out that the temple's adoption by the Hampi Mutt was never ratified by the endowments department. They also said that beyond the initial notices no steps were taken by the department. Justice Venugopal noted that both parties had admitted to the existence of a pending exemption application. While observing that the department failed to assess the temple's income or initiate steps under Section 6 to determine eligibility for inclusion in the official list of charitable and religious institutions, it gave officials three months to consider the plea for exemption.
