VENKATARAMANA DEVARU STATE OF MYSORE Vs. STATE OF MYSORE:VENKATARAMANA DEVARU

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The substantial question of law, which arises of decision in this appeal, is whether the right of a religious denomination to manage its own affairs in matters of religion guaranteed under Art. 26 (b) is subject to, and can be controlled by, a law protected by Art. 25(2)(b), throwing open a Hindu public temple to all classes and sections of Hindus.

(2.) In the District of South Kanara which formed until recently part of the State of Madras and is now comprised in the State of Mysore, there is a group of three villages, Mannampady, Bappanad and Karnad collectively known as Moolky Petah; and in the village of Mannampady, there is an ancient temple dedicated to Sri Venkataramana, renowned for its sanctity. It is this institution and its trustees, who are the appellants before us. The trustees are all of them members of a sect known as Gowda Saraswath Brahmins. It is said that the home of this community in the distant past was Kashmir, that the members thereof migrated thence to Mithila and Bihar, and finally moved southwards and settled in the region around Goa in sixty villages. They continued to retain their individuality in their new surroundings, spoke a language of their own called Konkani, married only amongst themselves, and worshipped idols which they had brought with them. Subsequently, owing to persecution by the Portuguese, they migrated further sough, some of them settling at Bhatkal and others in Cochin. Later on, a chieftain who was ruling over the Moolky area brought five of these families from Bhatkal, settled them at Mannapady, erected a temple for their benefit and installed their idol therein, which came to be known as Tirumalaivaru of Venkataramana, and endowed lands therefor. In course of time, other families of Gowda Saraswath Brahmins would appear to have settled in the three villages constituting Moolky, and the temple came to be managed by members of this community residing in those villages.

(3.) In 1915, a suit, O. S. No. 26 of 1915, was instituted in the Court of the Subordinate Judge of South Kanara under S. 92 of the Code of Civil procedure for framing a scheme for this temple. Exhibit A-6 is the decree passed in that suit. It begins by declaring that -