H H JAGADGURU CHANNA BASAVA MAHASWAMY MATADHIPATHI Vs. COMISSIONER OF ENDOWMENTS ANDHRA PRADESH HYDERABAD

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The current phenomenon is that Religious Charities and Endowments, Religious Institutions and Maths are quite often brought under the spell of bureaucracy thereby defeating the very goals for which these institutions were founded or established. The bureaucracy alone cannot be balmed for such sorry state by affiars. It is expected that by the exemplary conduct, character, piety, erudition and dedication the spiritual heads should inspire faith in their devotees in particular and the people at large in general. But, it is quite often complained that the modern heads of these institutions, by and large, tend to imbibe in them the art of political manoeuvers and greed to enrichments in terms of wealth as well as power at secular and temporal planes rather than to pursue the age-old path of Moksha or Nirvana as mandated by the great rishis and preceptors and in this process the bureaucracy and the statutory authorities readily find one or the other loophole or excuse to usurp the powers of Mahants, Matadipathis and Shebaits. A solution to the question,the question being who should succeed as Uttaradhikari of the predecessor Mathadhipa-thi, namely, Sri Karibasava Swamy of the Gavi Math Samsthanam, Uravakonda in Anantapur district after his death on 27-12-1991, has been delayed primarily on account of bureaucractic bunglings of the authorities of the Endowment department. I trust but for their unnecessary interferences, the solution should have been found to the vexed question by this time.

(2.) An these writ petitions relate to religious and temporal administration of Gavimath Samsthanam and they raise questions of powers vested in the authorities created under the Andhra Pradesh Charitable and Hindu Religious Institutions and Endowments Act, 1987, for short 'the Act'. Therefore, all these writ petitions were clubbed and heard together and they are being disposed of by this common order.

(3.) One Sri Karibasava Swamy was the Matadhipathi of Govimath of Uravakonda which was founded about more than 300 years ago by Veerasaiva community for the propagation and promotion of the tenets of Veerasaiva cult of Hinduism. According to the customs and usages, the Math should have a Mathadhipathi who has to discharge various sacred, religious as well as secular duties cast upon him and tour several places in the States of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Maharastra in particular where there are large number of devotees of the math. The Mathadhipathi has to give lectures, hold religious sabhas, perform Poojas, celebrate festivals and feed devotees and disciples. The Mathadhipathi is worshipped by the disciples and devotees with offerings in the shape of lands, money, foodgrains etc., The Mathadhipathi is held in great veneration by his devotees and disciples. This Institution was registered under Section 38 of the old Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Act in 1939.