New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday said that it would legalize its views that a committee headed by a retired High Court judge should manage the Bihari Temple, which was ranked in Vrindavan until Allahabad HC decided the validity of the ordinance of UP Gowat for the development of the temple and its surroundings.In view of the unfortunate incident of a stampede inside the temple in 2022, a bench of Surya Kant and Jomalya Bagchi said that the deaths of the pilgrims took place, “We are the fact that the temple administration should be managed in the interim by a committee headed by a retired HC judge, which should be assisted by the top officials of the maternal district.”Present for Goswamis (Pujaris), who claim that it was a private temple and the government had no right to handle its administration, senior advocate Kapil Sibal suggested to the court that it would be better if a retired SC judge was made the chairman of the temple management committee. “A retired HC judge would be good to manage the temple administration,” the bench said.In addition to the administration, SC said that this retired judge-led committee was strengthening to “look at the purchase of land around the temple”. The bench said that it would authorize the retired HC judge to include some ‘Goswamis’ in the committee for the purpose of smooth conduct of temple rituals.Additional Solicitor General KM Nataraj, appearing for the UP government, came to know from the notice of the BORT that a single judge bench of HC was also hearing a challenge for the ordinance and had made some unfair observations and passed the order.A bench led by Justice Kant said, “Do not know about the proceedings before solo judges SC?” The bench banned the order and further proceedings before the single judge.
