Management Committee of Thakur Shree Bankey Bihari Ji Maharaj Temple v. State of Uttar Pradesh

The present writ application was filed to address the promulgation of the Uttar Pradesh Shri Bankey Bihari Ji Temple Trust Ordinance, 2025 which allows the State to establish a trust for the management of the affairs of the Temple. The Supreme Court suspended the operations of the said Committee and instead instituted a High-Powered Committee led by Retired Justice Ashok Kumar, Allahabad High Court to look after the day-to-day functioning of the Temple.

Factual Matrix

The Temple is a world-renowned holy site for Hindu devotees and pilgrims and was built in 1864 on a land gifted by Raja Ratan Singh. Over the following years, disputes arose between two branches of the temple administrators, known as the Raj Bhog and the Shayan Bhog. This dispute had culminated into a civil suit filed before the Court of Munsif at Mathura in 1938, which led to the formulation of the Temple Managing Committee comprising of members of both sects.

However, in 2016, disputes arose again between the two sects regarding the Temple Managing Committee, and the High Court of Allahabad directed that until the issue was adjudicated, the Munsif of Mathura would oversee the Temple’s affairs. This meant that the day-to-day functioning remained with the sects, but the final approvals concerning the administration of the Temple were routed to the Munsif.

In 2022, an unfortunate stampede occurred which resulted into several injuries and two deaths. This led to a Public Interest Litigation being filed before the High Court which prayed for the striking down of the 1939 Scheme of Management and handing over of the Temple Management to the State of Uttar Pradesh. In those proceedings, the State proposed the establishment of an independent trust for the management of the temple, along with other redevelopment plans. The High Court approved the State’s plans of redevelopment, but did not allow the State to utilize the Temple’s funds and directed that all expenses be borne by the State exchequer.

In a parallel case of Shri Giriraj Temple at Govardhan, Mathura in 2025, the SC allowed the usage of the subject-temple’s funds for the acquisition of land, thereby modifying the High Court’s decision of exclusive usage of State funds in 2023. As a result, the present applications have been filed seeking the modification of this Court’s observations in above case, which the SC agreed to. The SC modified its orders given in the case of Shri Giriraj Temple and restored the legal position to as it was before.

Court’s Ruling

Along with the above issue, the State promulgated an Ordinance which contemplates the establishment of a Trust for managing the affairs of the Temple, overturning the 1939 Management Scheme. There were connected challenges to the said promulgation, which the SC decided to leave to the perusal of the High Court. But as an interim measure, the Court decided to keep the Ordinance under abeyance and ordered a stay on its operations till the matter is resolved by the High Court. The Court acknowledged that by doing so, it will effectively leave the management of the Temple in limbo yet again, since the ad-hoc committee had been largely ineffective.

Thus, the SC constituted a High-Powered Committee headed by an impartial person to handle the daily affairs of the Temple. The SC also issued some corollary directions of remuneration, office headquarters, posts, positions and members, and authority of those members. The SC clarified that no opinion is expressed on the merits of the constitutional challenge to the Ordinance, and that all contentions are left over for the High Court to consider on its own merits.