Marikamba temple to be managed by Muzrai dept.

Devotees stage protest in Sagar city against government order

April 26, 2016 12:00 am | Updated 05:46 am IST - Shivamogga:

Unpopular decision:Devotees and current temple managing committee members staging a protest against the government’s move in Sagar city on Monday.— photo: vaidya

Unpopular decision:Devotees and current temple managing committee members staging a protest against the government’s move in Sagar city on Monday.— photo: vaidya

The State government has passed an order to bring the administration of the Marikamba temple in Sagar city under the Muzrai Department. At present, the temple is being administered by a committee of devotees.

D.M. Satish Kumar, Assistant Commissioner of Sagar sub-division, told The Hindu that, in the wake of the allegations of financial irregularities at the temple, the government has passed an order under Section 42 of the Karnataka Hindu Religious Institutions and Charitable Endowments Act, 1997.

It is alleged that the temple accounts have not been maintained properly for years. Acting on the complaints on financial irregularities, the State government had issued a notice to the previous managing committee seeking an explanation. The then Assistant Commissioner of Sagar had submitted a report to the government on the allegations. Besides this, the Muzrai Department had also conducted a probe into the matter. Following all this, on April 12, the government passed the order.

The temple was established during the rule of the Keladi kingdom and the deity there was called ‘Dandinamaari’ earlier. According to sources, an amount of Rs. 1.5 crore is deposited with various banks in the name of temple. In addition to this, the temple owns 8.35 acres of land in Chandramaavinakoppalu, and two acres in Jambagaru locality in Sagar.Meanwhile, members of the Marikamba Devasthana Vyavasthapana Samithi, the current temple management committee, and a large number of devotees staged a protest in Sagar city on Monday opposing the move. Leaders of many parties, including th Congress, BJP and JD(S), took part in it.

Addressing the protestes, K.N. Nagendra, president of the administrative committee, said the government had taken a “unilateral decision” on the matter.

0 / 0
Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.