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Mahesh

18/08/25 09:17 AM IST

Uttar Pradesh govt want to take over the 150-year old Krishna shrine

In News 
  • The the Banke Bihari Temple Trust Bill, 2025 was introduced in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly recently. 
  • The Bill allows the formation of a board of government-appointed trustees, including 11 nominated and seven ex-officio members to 150-year old Krishna temple in Mathura.
History of temple 
  • Inspired by Swami Haridas’ vision of a dark-hued Lord Krishna joyously dancing in the forests of Vrindavan (Nidhivan), the Banke Bihari deity was installed by his disciple and younger brother Goswami Jagannath in late 16th century.
  • As per tradition, the descendants of Swami Haridas - Saraswat Brahmin priests belonging to the Goswami sect, perform ‘Seva’ to the deity till date.
  • The current temple complex was built by Goswami priests in 1862 by raising funds on their own.
  • As per its design, the temple has a narrow passage and a maximum capacity of 150 people.
  • Surrounding the temple are narrow lanes (kunj galiyan) making approach to the temple tough as it attracts a crowd of 10,000 devotees per day.
  • On festivals such as Krishna Janmashtami and Holi, the temple attracts five to ten lakh devotees – making it one of the most crowded temple in Uttar Pradesh.
Banke Bihari corridor
  • In January 2023, the Yogi government unveiled its plan to build the corridor which will cost the exchequer ₹262 crore.
  • Spanning five acres to accommodate 10,000 devotees at a time, the corridor will provide three entry routes to the temple from Jugal Ghat, Vidyapeeth and Jadoun.
  • With two floors, the corridor will house shops selling puja items, a 3,500 square-metre (sqm) waiting room and open area spanning 5,113 sq.m.
  • In protest, priests and shopkeepers wrote to the Chief Minister with their blood, urging him to shelve the project. In November that year, the Allahabad HC allowed the project to proceed but declined the state’s plea to utilise temple funds for land acquisition.
Legal Tussle 
  • Recently, the state government passed the Banke Bihari Temple Trust which circumvented the High Court’s direction, allowing it use temple funds for the project.
  • Filing a civil dispute, the state got the apex court’s nod to so on May 15. The two-judge SC bench of Justices Bela M Trivedi (since retired) and Satish Chandra Sharma allowed the state to utilise ₹500 crore from the temple trust fund to develop a corridor around the temple. 
  • The apex court also chided the temple management stating that inspite of receiving donations running into hundreds of crores, no tangible steps were taken by the temple management to better facilities for visitors.
  • It observed that the Goswami priests themselves remain divided in factions and continue to litigate before civil courts, leading to administrative inaction.
  • Assuring all stakeholders (including rival factions) of responsible management of the temple and development of adjoining areas, the SC has formed an interim committee to run the temple.
  • With the Bill, replacing the ordinance now likely to be passed by the government, the tussle over the Banke Bihari temple and its ‘treasure’ is likely to drag on.
Source- The Hindu 

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