Plea in SC seeking uniform code for religious and charitable endowments

A petition under Article 32 has been filed in the Supreme Court, seeking directions to the central government to draft a 'Common Charter for Religious and Charitable Institutions' and 'Uniform code for Religious and charitable endowments'. The petition seeks a declaration that Hindus, Jains, Buddhists, and Sikhs should have similar rights to own, acquire, and administer the religious properties as Muslims and Christians have in India

New Delhi: A petition under Article 32 has been filed in the Supreme Court, seeking directions to the Central government to draft a 'Common Charter for Religious and Charitable Institutions' and 'Uniform code for Religious and Charitable endowments'. The petition seeks a declaration that Hindus, Jains, Buddhists, and Sikhs should have similar rights to own, acquire, and administer the religious properties as Muslims and Christians have in India.

The plea has been filed by BJP member and advocate Ashwini Upadhyay who contends that the Charitable Endowments Act, 1890 is "arbitrary, irrational, and contrary to Article 14, 15, and 26 because it doesn't restrict the financial and managerial activities of mosques and churches situated". The petitioner has said that impact to Hindus, Sikhs, Jains and Buddhists is extremely large as the state governments control their religious structures leading to pathetic condition of temples and gurudwaras as it is managed by "callous-corrupt" state officials.

"Mismanagement extends to all aspects of temple administration and rich temples such as Tirupati Guruvayoor, Siddhivinayak, Vaishno Devi are used to filling the pockets of ruling political parties. What is happening in Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Andhra Pradesh can only be described as broad daylight loot," read the plea. Citing certain incidents, the plea contends that there is gross incompetence when it comes to temple maintenance which the state does acknowledge but the damage is already been done.

"Hindus, Jains, Buddhists, and Sikhs are accused of not performing adequate social service for poor, unlike Muslims and Christians. But how could they, when the state usurps temple funds and interferes in educational and other institutions? Mosques and churches are free from interference and run schools and hospitals on a for-profit basis that generate huge funds. Such institutionalized discrimination against an ostensible majority community is without parallel anywhere in the world. This severely hampers the Hindu, Buddhist, Jain, and Sikh communities ability to respond to threats of religious conversion. Petitioner submits that politicians are misappropriating temple's funds but intellectuals have never opposed state's interference," read the plea.

Petitioner says that non-uniform rules depict discrimination against the Hindu community even when secularism is one of the main features of our nation. "Direct and declare that all the laws made to own, acquire, and administer movable-immovable properties of temples-gurudwaras are arbitrary, irrational, and offend articles 14,15,26. Hence, void," prayed the petitioner.