Bengaluru: The Karnataka Governor has returned the amendment bill related to the Karnataka Hindu Religious Institutions and Charitable Endowments Act, which proposed allocating 5% to 10% of the general collection fund from revenue generated by ‘A’ category temples to support ‘C’ category temples. He has now directed the state government to forward it to the President for further consideration.

Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot stated that the clarifications provided by the government regarding the proposed bill were not satisfactory. As a result, he found it inappropriate to approve the bill at this stage. Citing constitutional concerns and legal limitations associated with the bill, he opined that the matter should be brought to the attention of the President for appropriate guidance.

Referring to the Karnataka Hindu Religious Institutions and Charitable Endowments Act of 1997, the Governor mentioned that a writ petition regarding this matter is pending before the High Court. The High Court had previously ruled that enforcement of the Act could potentially violate Articles 14, 25, and 26 of the Constitution. This verdict has been challenged in the Supreme Court, which has issued a stay order.

Bill forwarded to the President

The proposed amendment aims to direct 10% of the revenue collected from temples with annual income exceeding Rs 1 crore, and 5% from temples with income between Rs 10 lakh and Rs 1 crore, to ‘C’ category temples. Due to the lack of convincing justification from the government, the Governor has advised that the bill be sent to the President.

The state government had introduced an amendment to this Act earlier in 2023 as well. At that time, the Governor had sought some clarifications and later granted approval. However, the government has now decided to introduce further amendments.

Awaiting Supreme Court verdict

The amendment includes a new Section 65E, under which the state government proposes to establish district and state-level committees within the jurisdiction of ‘A’ category temples. However, the High Court has already delivered a contradictory ruling on this aspect. Given this, the Governor believes it would be appropriate to wait for the Supreme Court’s final verdict before granting assent to the bill.