CONTROVERSY ON GOVERNMENT’S CONTROL OVER HINDU RELIGIOUS IDENTITIES IN INDIA-A STUDY
This paper has focused on the controversial issue of government control over religious entities of the Hindu community and charging taxes on the revenue earned by them mainly from donations offered by the devotees, which has attracted nation-wise agitation and debate on understanding articles 25 and 26 of the Indian Constitution. In India, the affairs of around 25 Lakh temples and maths (monasteries) belonging to the majority Hindu community are regulated by various state authorities through Hindu Religion & Charitable Endowment (HRCE) Act which has been enacted for the first time in 1951 after independence in Tamil Nadu and gradually adopted by other states. Whereas the places of worship of other faiths in India enjoy absolute freedom as they are owned by their respective communities and the governments have almost no say in their administration, rituals, and financial matters. As a result, various leaders and advocators of the Hindu community complain that it has not only hurt the very secular fabric of the country but also created a sense in the mind of the majority community that they are being persecuted in their own land even after independence. Hindu leaders argue that Hindu Religion & Charitable Endowment (HRCE) Act is discriminatory in nature as it applies to the Hindu community only and hence it should be abolished as being unconstitutional. On the other hand, various state governments argue that its intervention in temple administration is necessary in order to prevent corruption made by the trustees and to ensure social welfare and reforms as well as to correct historical social inequities which have been seen in Sabarimala temple in recent times. This paper has made a concerted effort to examine the question of the justification of government control over Hindu temples and the imposition of taxes on temple revenues and attempted to find an amicable solution to the issue.
HRCE Act, Religious Entities, Articles 25 & 26 Of Indian Constitution, Hindu Community