CHENNAI : The Madras High Court has ordered the Tamil Nadu government to upload complete audit details of major temples, including Palani and Tiruchendur, on the official website within two weeks.
In 2023, TR Ramesh, President of the Indic Collective Trust from Mylapore, filed a petition seeking a direction to upload the annual income and expenditure audit reports of all temples in Tamil Nadu on the HR&CE department website.
A special bench that heard the petition earlier had, in August, directed the HR&CE Commissioner to upload the audit reports of major temples such as Palani and Tiruchendur on the website.
When the case again came up for hearing before the special bench Justices R Suresh Kumar and S Sounthar, the HR&CE Department informed the court that officials had been instructed to upload the audit details according to the court's orders, and that summaries of audit reports for 541 temples had already been uploaded. The department also sought additional time to complete the remaining work.
Appearing for the petitioner, TR Ramesh argued that the HR&CE department had deliberately failed to comply with the court's order. He contended that the department feared that uploading the complete audit details would expose irregularities and malpractice in the income and expenditure of temples.
After hearing both sides, the judges stated that uploading only summaries of the audit reports was not acceptable. They ordered that the full audit details of major temples like Palani and Tiruchendur be uploaded within two weeks, and adjourned the hearing to December 18.