Peetadhipathis resolve to form Dharmachari Mandali to run temples

[Guest guest]

HOW REPRESENTATIVE IS THIS MANDALI?

 

Source: The Hindu

(http://www.hinduonnet.com/2005/07/13/stories/2005071315190500.htm)

 

Andhra Pradesh

Guntur

Peetadhipathis resolve to form Dharmachari Mandali to run temples

Staff Reporter

 

Accord on formation of Dharmachari Mandali; team to meet the Chief Minister

 

Endowments Department fails in its job Chalo Assembly during winter session Plea

to stop sale of endowments lands Setting up of Hindu Board sought

 

GUNTUR:

Peetadhipatis here from all over the State, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka here on

Tuesday formally decided to form a Dharmachari Mandali for running of temples

taking over them from the Endowments Department.

 

The religious leaders heading several peethams and ashrams in Andhra Pradesh in

association with the Akhilandhra Sadhu Parishad demanded immediate scrapping of

Section 30 of Endowments Act Amendment of 1987 paving way for the Dharmachari

Mandali to have control over running of temples and managing properties.

 

The Kakinada Sree Peetham Peetadhipati, Paripoornananda Saraswati, and the

Visakhapatnam Sarada Peetham Peetadhipati, Swaroopananda Swamy, representing the

mandali, told reporters after their closed-door meeting that the Endowments

Department had failed in protecting the interests of temples and maintaining the

sanctity of purpose for which properties were donated.

 

 

Sale of lands

At many temples daily rituals were not being conducted by the department, they

alleged and added that lands belonging to a majority of temples were sold away

without considering interest of the temple.

 

Such sale of land would not be tolerated at all, they said. The mandali also

decided to collectively go to the Chief Minister,

Y.Samuel. Rajasekhara Reddy, and submit a memorandum to him seeking scrapping of

the 1987 amendment, creating a Hindu Board that could look after all religious

and related affairs on a par with the Wakf Board.

 

"If the Chief Minister refuses to oblige us we will launch indefinite strike in

Hyderabad till we achieve our goal, as such governmental control was there on

Hindu religious institutions in other States such as Bihar and Uttar Pradesh,"

Paripoornanda Swamy said.