HC denies Danta royalty special puja privileges

Ahmedabad: The Gujarat high court on Wednesday upheld the decision to register the ancient Arasuri Ambaji Mata Devasthan as a public trust. It dismissed an appeal by the erstwhile Danta state royalty and quashed the privileges granted to them to perform puja on the eighth day of Navratri in private while other devotees are shut out.The appeal was filed by Maharana Mahipendrasinhji Parmar, heir of the erstwhile Danta state, challenging the registration of the temple as a public religious trust and asserting the royal family's hereditary rights. The case, which has been ongoing since 2009, revolved around the ownership and management rights of the Arasuri Ambaji Temple, a prominent religious site attracting millions of pilgrims annually.The appellant claimed hereditary rights to perform special puja on the eighth day of Navratri, to perform the havan in the temple, and to wave the Chamar before the Goddess. While performing these services to the Goddess, pilgrims were shut out or excluded from the temple premises. This right was earlier accepted by authorities. Disputes with the govt in this regard have been ongoing since 1960, and various litigations have taken place.After referring to the history of the state, the royalty's rights, and the merger agreement after independence, Justice H M Prachchhak said, "I am of the opinion that the Arasuri Ambaji temple is a public religious institution, and the deity is a juristic person owning endowed property."By referring to the Supreme Court's verdict in the Padmanabhaswamy temple case, the high court said, "The appellant cannot claim ownership or any right over the property which belongs to the deity, and even by virtue of amendment, he cannot claim any privilege of performing puja on a particular day in the way he is claiming and thereby curtail the right of the pilgrims to perform puja and to offer their prayer. More than lakhs of people visit during the period of Asho Maas Navratri, and on the 8th day of Asho Maas Navratri, huge numbers of pilgrims visit the temple of the holy shrine Arasuri Ambaji temple, and in the midst of a huge crowd, no privileges can be granted in favour of the appellant."