HC stays tribunal’s order on Bhagyalakhmi temple

Done: arunHyderabad: Justice Laxmi Narayana Alishetty of the high court on Friday stayed all further proceedings arising out of the Telangana Endowments Tribunal's Feb 21 order. The order had directed the endowments department to take over the Bhagyalakshmi temple at Charminar and manage its affairs through an assistant commissioner. Justice Alishetty issued a notice to the state and endowments authorities and directed them to file their responses. The case will be heard again on March 21. The judge agreed with senior counsel Ashok Anand Kumar, who contended that the tribunal had overstepped its jurisdiction by involving the endowments commissioner, who was not even a party in the case. The tribunal had been dealing with rival claims over the temple's control, particularly between the founder's family and other interested parties.The temple was founded by Mahanth Ramchandra Das, and after his death, his disciple and adopted son, Raj Mohan Das, was recognised as his successor by the endowments assistant commissioner on Dec 30, 1991. In a separate proceeding, Raj Mohan was declared a member of the founder's family on Dec 17, 1996. These decisions remained unchallenged. After Raj Mohan Das's death in 1998, some of his family members were declared members of the founder's family, a move that was contested before the tribunal by the original founder's kin.It was during this legal tussle that the tribunal decided to hand over the temple's management to the endowments department. Raj Mohan Das's family members had appealed this decision in the high court.
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