The Uttarakhand Chardham Devasthanam Management Act, 2019 was enacted by the Government of Uttarakhand in December 2019. It aims at bringing the Chota Char Dham of Badrinath Temple, Kedarnath Temple, Gangotri Temple, Yamunotri Temple and 49 other temples under the purview of a proposed shrine board.[1][2][3]
| Uttarakhand Chardham Devasthanam Management Act 2019 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly | |
| |
| Citation | Act No. 06 of 2020 |
| Territorial extent | Uttarakhand |
| Enacted by | Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly |
| Enacted | 10 December 2019 |
| Assented to | 30 December 2019 |
| Effective | 30 December 2019 |
| Repealed | 30 November 2021 |
| Legislative history | |
| Bill title | Uttarakhand Chardham Devasthanam Management Bill 2019 |
| Introduced by | Trivendra Singh Rawat |
| Introduced | 10 December 2019 |
| Voting summary |
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| Repealed by | |
| Repealing Act of 2023 | |
| Struck down by | |
| Government of Uttarakhand | |
| Status: Repealed | |
Description
editAs per the act, the shrine board is the highest governing body for the management of the temples with power to frame policies, make decisions to give effect to the provisions of this act, of budget formulation and to sanction expenditure among others. The board may also give instructions for the safe custody, prevention and management of funds, valuable securities, jewellery and properties vested in the temples. The board was also supposed to provide integrated, advanced and smooth services to the devotees. Earlier before the Chota Char Dham was governed by Shri Badrinath-Kedarnath Mandir Samiti which was chaired by a state government appointed person.
Criticism
editThe Act was widely criticized by the local Hindu priests and Vishva Hindu Parishad Leaders who were against the formation of any board and want that the Hindu temples must be governed by the Hindu society, not the government. Hindu saints [clarification needed] and VHP leaders also protested several times against the act. In July 2020, a Public Interest Litigation was filed by Rajya Sabha MP Subramanian Swamy challenging the constitution validity of the Uttarakhand Chardham Devasthanam Management Act, 2019 and asking to sought a direction striking down the act which was dismissed by the Uttarakhand High Court.[4][5][6][7][8]
Repeal of Uttarakhand Devasthanam Management Act, 2019
editIn July 2021 Pushkar Singh Dhami led BJP government announced the formation of High power committee to review the Uttarakhand Chardham Devasthanam Management Act, 2019 accepting the requests of priests and VHP leaders.[9] On November 30, 2021 the Uttarakhand government announced the repeal of the act following the report of the High power committee. Politically the withdrawal of act was also seen as a "political stunt" by the BJP government ahead of the 2022 Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly election.[10][11][12]
References
edit- ^ "THE UTTARAKHAND CHAR DHAM DEVASTHANAM MANAGEMENT Act, 2019" (PDF). Retrieved 2024-01-18.
- ^ "U'khand guv clears Char Dham Devsthanam Management Bill 2019 | Dehradun News - Times of India". The Times of India.
- ^ "Char Dham Devasthanam Board: U'khand rethink on temple board plan". Hindustan Times. April 9, 2021.
- ^ "Subramanian Swamy files PIL opposing newly framed law to govern temples in Uttarakhand". The New Indian Express.
- ^ "PIL against Char Dham Act: HC issues notice to Uttarakhand". February 26, 2020.
- ^ "Uttarakhand HC upholds constitutional validity of Uttarakhand Char Dham Devasthanam Management Act". Hindustan Times. July 21, 2020.
- ^ NETWORK, LIVELAW NEWS (July 21, 2020). "Uttarakhand HC Upholds Constitutional Validity Of Uttarakhand Char Dham Devasthanam Management Act [Read Judgment]". www.livelaw.in.
- ^ "Dr. Subramanian Swamy vs State of Uttarakhand and Others on 21 July, 2020".
- ^ "Uttarakhand: Committee to look into Devasthanam Board, priests call off rally | Dehradun News - Times of India". The Times of India.
- ^ "Uttarakhand to repeal Char Dham Devasthanam Board Bill". December 1, 2021.
- ^ "Controversial Devasthanam Act to be Repealed: Uttarakhand CM Dhami". News18. November 30, 2021.
- ^ "Uttarakhand: CM Pushkar Singh Dhami announces repeal of Char Dham Devasthanam Board Management Act". November 30, 2021.