Sreya Kanugula
The High Court of Andhra Pradesh had set the removal order aside of one of the TDP party’s chief leaders, P. Ashok Gajapathi Raju from the chairman/Founder Family Member (FFM)’s post of around 3 temple trustee boards, including Vizianagaram’s Sri Rama Swamy Devasthanam temple.
The man in question was expelled from these temple trust board chairmanships on the alleged failure to take necessary steps from preventing the Rama idol from being destroyed at the Ramatheertham temple.
The State government had issued a memo to Mr. Raju with regards to his removal from these posts, stating the reason to be the failure of discharge of his rightful duties and lack of addressing issues concerning the safety of these temples.
Mr. Raju argued in his petition that the method of his removal from the post of FFM/trust board chairman of the following temples of — Ramatheertham temple, Vizianagaram district’s Sri Pydithalli Ammavari Devasthanam, and East Godavari district’s Sri Mandeswara Swamy temple was done through a memo.
Instead of his removal done through a G.O, this removal order given via memo was in blatant violation of Sec.28 (2) of AP Charitable and the Hindu Religious Institutions and Endowments Act of 1987, he stated.
The court had agreed on the basic contention of Mr. Raju, which revolved around Section 29 of the aforementioned Act stating that the temple custodians will be the appointed Commissioner of Endowments and the Executive Officers and not the temple’s chairpersons/FFMs.
Neither the chairpersons of the temples nor the FFMs were held responsible for the recent ‘attacks’ on the temples.
Mr. Raju had also questioned the logic on how the government could remove him from FFM/chairman posts of three temples on ‘an act committed to one temple.’