Srinagar: The High Court of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh has issued significant directives to district authorities in Srinagar, Anantnag, and Baramulla, instructing them to take immediate control of various temple and trust properties.
In Srinagar, a division bench comprising Justice M.A. Chowdhary and Justice Sanjeev Kumar ordered the Deputy Commissioner (DC) of Srinagar to assume management of a temple and its associated properties. The case revolves around a land dispute involving 159 kanals 10 marlas and 192 square feet, located in the Barzulla area, as per Survey No. 55 min. The court mandated that the DC either personally manage the temple’s affairs or appoint a committee of responsible officers from the revenue and other relevant departments.
The bench further instructed that no mutations should be attested in the name of any Mahant or disciple. The properties must remain under the temple’s name, managed by the District Administration, and this should be duly reflected in the revenue records. Additionally, the DC or the appointed committee is to demarcate the land, establish clear boundaries, and address any encroachments according to the law.
In a related case in Anantnag, the High Court directed the District Magistrate to restore ownership of over 11 kanals of land in Trahpoo village, Achabal tehsil, to two Kashmiri Pandit siblings, Rituraj and Kandarp S. Kathju. The dispute centered on a claim by the Shri Ramakrishna Mahasammelan Ashram (SRMA) Nagadandi that the land was religiously donated. However, the court, presided over by Justice M.A. Chowdhary, ruled in favor of the Kathju brothers, nullifying earlier proceedings initiated by the Ashram and ordering the return of the land in accordance with the Jammu and Kashmir Migrant Immovable Property (Preservation, Protection, and Restraint on Distress Sales) Act of 1997.
In a related case in Baramulla, the high court addressed another dispute involving land measuring 10 kanals 4 marlas in the Hail Kreeri area, recorded as “Dharamshalla” in the revenue records. The petitioners claimed ownership based on their father’s occupation and subsequent mutation of the land in their favor in 1988. The High Court directed the District Magistrate of Baramulla to take over the property for proper management, with the authority to appoint a committee of officers from the revenue and other departments for this purpose.
These orders will remain in effect until appropriate mechanisms for managing and developing the properties are established, or until relevant legislation is enacted by the Government of the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.
