Countering the allegations by the Opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) that the State government has made amendments to the Karnataka Hindu Religious Institutions and Charitable Endowments Act, 1997, to “take away a share of the rich temple’s income” to be used for other purposes, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah termed the allegation as “deliberate misinformation”.
Muzrai Minister Ramalinga Reddy clarified that the money so taken would be in the ‘Common Pool Fund’, which will be administered by the Rajya Dharmika Parishat. The parishat will, among other objectives, fund poor ‘C’ grade temples and provide several facilities for temple priests and their families, including health insurance and scholarships.
“The Common Pool Fund is utilised only for the benefit of religious purposes of Hindu religious institutions since the Act came into force in 2003 and in future also, it will be utilised for the same purpose,” Mr. Reddy said in a statement, adding that the BJP should first read the law, rather than spread “baseless canards”. Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said the BJP was deliberately “trying to polarise people along communal lines”.
