The administration of the Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple in Thiruvananthapuram informed the Supreme Court on Friday that due to a financial crunch, it is unable to pay the Rs 11.7 crore to the Kerala government as reimbursement for security and maintenance-related expenses. The temple is considered to be one of the richest temples in the world.
Advocate Uttara Babbar, appearing for the temple's administrative committee, informed the two-judge bench of Justices UU Lalit and Indu Malhotra that due to the pandemic, the administration was not able to reimburse the expenses to the state. Babbar informed that the temple administration has sought time as the temple was closed due to the pandemic.
The SC bench left the decision to the state government and said that the court wouldn't pass an order regarding this at this time.
In July 2020, the Supreme Court had given the Travancore royal family rights to manage the temple, setting aside a High Court order that gave power to the state. As per the ruling, the state will initially pay expenses for upkeep, which will later be reimbursed by the temple.
The apex court was reviewing a report filed by Thiruvananthapuram District Judge K Babu on the progress over the SC ruling in July regarding the temple administration. The report said that most of the directions by the court have been implemented.
Last July, the apex court had accepted the royal family’s submission suggesting the formation of a temple administrative committee, with the Thiruvananthapuram District Judge as the chairperson to take care of the daily temple administration. The administration includes a nominee of the royal family, the chief thantri (priest) of the temple, a nominee of the state and a member nominated by the Union Ministry of Culture.
The SC also ordered the formation of a second committee to advise the first committee on policy matters of the temple. These committees are entrusted to protect the treasures and properties of the temple, one of the richest in India.
