‘Jai Shri Banke Bihari’

It is widely accepted that Indians are deeply religious, and India stands unique as the nation where people seek images of their deities in every aspect of life. This stems from the unwavering faith that Indian devotees have in their homeland, Bharat. This enduring belief flows continuously in the minds of Hindu worshippers of the true Brahma, representing Sanatan, which has been India's identity for millennia. However, it turns into superstition when some individuals exploit the scientific aspects of Sanatan for personal gain. In India, the worship of various forms of Lord Krishna has persisted for thousands of years, with Banke Bihari being one such form. The beauty of this form is indescribable even by the most skilled poets, as Hindu devotees in India regard it as supernatural. Recently, the Lord Banke Bihari temple in Vrindavan, Braj region, has been the center of controversy. The Yogi government of Uttar Pradesh plans to construct a Banke Bihari corridor similar to other renowned pilgrimage sites, facing opposition from local priests, shopkeepers, and residents due to fears of displacement. Nonetheless, the Yogi government assures that all displaced individuals will be adequately rehabilitated.

Hindus from all over India have unwavering faith and devotion in Shri Banke Bihari temple and they come here in large numbers to visit in every season, due to which there is a huge crowd in the temple. On various occasions, there are also reports of stampedes in the temple in which many people lose their lives. Although the state government also deploys police and other forces to maintain law and order, but given the narrow streets and market around the temple, management is not done properly and unpleasant accidents often happen. Along with this, the management of the temple is in the hands of the families of some priests. It is clear that devotees donate or gift crores of rupees to the temple every year. The expenditure details of this wealth remain beyond the reach of the government, while on the other hand the crowd of devotees keeps increasing every year. Keeping this in mind, the Yogi government had announced to build a temple corridor.

First of all, it should be understood that a temple cannot be anyone's private property. History tells us that at the time of establishment of any temple, a priest was also appointed who was responsible for the management of the temple. Hence, a temple is a public property because its maintenance is indirectly done by the devotees. But the people of Goswami family, descendants of Swami Haridas, call Banke Bihari temple their private property. In fact, during the Mughal period, Swami Haridas, a great devotee and a great connoisseur of music, established the Banke Bihari temple. There is a legend that he found the idol of Banke Bihari ji, which he established. Swami Haridas came to Vrindavan from 'Multan' area of Punjab. Since then, this idol has been established. But currently it is the 21st century and the population of 34 crores at the time of independence has increased to 140 crores, so the area of the temple complex is becoming unable to bear the huge crowd of devotees arriving, in view of which the Yogi government first transformed the entire Vrindavan city and now it wants to build a corridor of the temple.

Regarding this, a petition was first filed in the Allahabad High Court against it, which the court rejected and in November 2023 granted permission to the state government to build the corridor, but imposed a restriction that money should not be taken from the bank account in the name of Shri Banke Bihari for the construction of the corridor. After this, the matter reached the Supreme Court and the country's Supreme Court, while hearing the petition on May 15, 2025, accepted the multilateral prayer (inter locutory) filed by the state government. This petition was related to the management of the temples of the entire Braj region and providing maximum service to the devotees. The Hon'ble Supreme Court then allowed the state government to withdraw money from the temple's account to buy five acres of land around the Banke Bihari temple. But the land should be in the name of Shri Banke Bihari. Immediately after this, on May 25, 2025, the state government issued an ordinance and formed the Shri Banke Bihari Ji Temple Trust. This trust will look after the management of the temple etc. A two-member bench of the Supreme Court is looking into this matter, which includes Justice Suryakant and Jaymalya Bagchi. During the hearing yesterday, Justice Suryakant asked the state government's lawyer why it was so hasty in bringing the ordinance? The court can also hand over the work of managing the temple to a committee formed under the leadership of a retired judge. In fact, the ordinance of the state government itself has been challenged in the Supreme Court. The lawyer of the Yogi government argued that those who have challenged the ordinance do not have the right to manage the temple because many people claim to do so. The conclusion of this matter can be that the Supreme Court can give permission for the construction of the corridor by appointing a retired High Court judge as the head of the management of the temple.