Allahabad High Court Delegates Janmashtami Festival Management at Banke Bihari Temple to District Administration

The Allahabad High Court has delegated the management of law and order to the district administration for the Janmashtami festival at Banke Bihari temple in Mathura from August 25 to 29. The court also ordered to restrict live streaming to the temple premises to control crowd influx.

The Allahabad High Court has entrusted the responsibility of maintaining law and order during the Janmashtami festival at Banke Bihari temple in Mathura to the district administration. This will be in effect from August 25 to 29. The court instructed the state government to restrict live streaming to within the temple premises to help control the crowd.

In coordination with the Civil Judge, Junior Division, Mathura, the court has permitted the installation of CCTV cameras within the temple using receivers under the existing temple system established in 1939. The District Magistrate has been instructed to follow the directions from the Civil Judge. Both the temple management and government will supervise the festival arrangements.

This order was issued by the bench comprising Justice Siddharth Verma and Justice Ram Manohar Narayan Mishra while hearing a Public Interest Litigation filed by Anant Sharma and another individual from Mathura, following a stampede at the temple last August. The next hearing is scheduled for August 28. The court had previously issued instructions on December 8, 2023, regarding crowd management, which were not implemented. The government has since sought to revise these instructions.

Opposition to the government's demand was voiced, stating that crowd control cannot be effectively managed solely through court orders. The government has filed an affidavit, assuring that adequate arrangements will be made for Janmashtami, including barricading and controlled entry. Live streaming will be permitted only within the temple premises, with screens placed outside at various locations.

Advocate Sankalp Goswami contested the idea of live streaming outside the temple, leading to the court's decision to limit it to inside the temple premises only.

(With inputs from agencies.)