SC delays hearing of 12-year feud between ISKCON Mumbai and Bengaluru

The conflict between the Mumbai and Bengaluru branches of International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) over the control of the temple in Karnataka's capital has been ongoing for decades. However, the issue gained more attention when a luxury bus purchased by ISKCON for INR 5 lakh in 2002 was found in a dilapidated state at a dumpyard in Vrindavan. The bus has become a bone of contention in the dispute, with the Mumbai branch accusing the Bengaluru branch of stealing it and illegally transferring its ownership to the Bengaluru ISKCON.

The conflict escalated when the Mumbai ISKCON filed a First Information Report (FIR) against the Bengaluru branch, alleging theft of the bus. However, the Bengaluru branch contested the registration of the FIR, claiming that the charges were fabricated. Madhu Pandit Dasa, Chanchalpati Das, and two others were charged in the West Bengal police chargesheet.

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During the hearing in the Supreme Court, the Mumbai branch declined the Bengaluru branch's offer to settle the criminal case. The SC then ordered that the parties maintain the status quo as of today in the same order. To supervise the Bengaluru Society's management of the temple and its properties, the SC established a committee on December 14, 2011.

In a ruling, the Karnataka HC stated - "Richer the endowment, greater will be the temptation to swallow the same. Under these circumstances, Madhu Pandit Das and his associates conspired to claim right of ownership not only over the income, but over the idol, the deity of the temple and the entire assets of the temple. Madhupandit Das and his associates had taken advantage of the identical names."

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The court further remarked, "This is how Madhu Pandit Das and his associates started claiming that there was no branch of Mumbai ISKCON at Bangalore and the ISKCON movement at Bangalore was built by plaintiff society and the scheduled properties belong to the plaintiff society". The HC rejected a request to have the judgement's critical comments removed.

On March 2, 2016, the SC had accepted the SLP submitted by the Bengaluru branch. However, the case was not taken up for hearing on the scheduled date of August 25, 2022, by a bench of Justices D Y Chandrachud and Surya Kant. So far, the SC website has not listed a new date for the hearing of the 12-year-old appeal.