In its Friday’s judgment, the Supreme Court put aside a ruling from the Karnataka High Court that ruled that Iskcon Mumbai was the owner of Bangalore’s iconic Hare Krishna Hill Temple.
Justices of Oka and Ag Masih insisted on a trial court decision that Iskcon-Bangalore was the owner of the temple and property, and thus had a nearly 25-year-old dispute between the two religious institutions.
“Totally wrong”
The Supreme Court concluded that ISKCON-MUMBAI owned the temple through its branch in Bangalore “completely wrong” and “violated documentary evidence”.
“Even assuming that ISKCON Bangalore did not possess funds, and even if money came from ISKCON Mumbai, it cannot claim ownership. Only because the existence of the Bangalore branch of ISKCON Mumbai was proved, one cannot jump to the conclusion that allotment of Schedule ‘A’ (temple) property was to ISKCON Mumbai through the Bangalore branch,” Justice Oka, who authored the judgment, concluded
Justice Oka observed that the trial court had obtained the findings after considering detailed evidence that the intended property belongs to Iskcon Bangalore.
No evidence
“The trial court also recorded a finding that Mumbai has no evidence to possess Schedule’s property. There is absolutely no evidence to support the claim,” the Supreme Court agreed.
ISKCON BANGALORE has filed the top court on June 2, 2011, and submitted the High Court’s verdict of May 23, 2011.
In the request, Iskcon Bangalore, represented by office competitor Kodandarama Dasa, filed a high court judgment that overturned the 2009 trial court order.
Dissolution of panels
As the dispute was settled, the Supreme Court ordered the dissolution of the committee, which was ruled by former Apex court judge Judge RV Raveendran, on its direction on Friday. The Raveendran Justice’s group was tasked with surveillance of temple management.
publishing – May 16, 2025 at 11:19 pm IST
