A Public Interest Litigation (PIL) has been moved in the Supreme Court seeking the establishment of a judicial commission or expert committee to overhaul the wage structures and benefits provided to priests, sevadars, and staff working in state-controlled temples across India.
The petition, filed by advocate Ashwini Upadhyay, argues that the current remuneration for temple staff is often lower than the state-prescribed minimum wages for unskilled workers, describing the situation as a form of “systemic exploitation.”
At the heart of the plea is the demand for a legal declaration that priests and temple staff be recognized as “employees” under Section 2(k) of the Code on Wages, 2019. The petitioner contends that when a state government assumes administrative, economic, and financial control over a temple, an inherent employer-employee relationship is established.
“Denial of dignified wages to priests and temple staff violates the right to livelihood guaranteed under Article 21,” the petition states, emphasizing that the State must act as a “model employer” through its endowments departments.
The cause of action for the PIL reportedly accrued on April 4, following Upadhyay’s visit to the state-controlled Kashi Vishwanath temple in Varanasi. After performing ‘Rudrabhishek,’ the advocate claimed he discovered that temple staff were not receiving the minimum wages necessary to live with dignity.
The plea highlights a growing wave of discontent among temple workers, citing recent large-scale protests in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana where staff demanded basic financial protections.
The petition points to a specific incident on February 7, 2025, at the Dandayuthapani Swami Temple in Madurai. A government department issued a circular strictly prohibiting priests from accepting ‘dakshina’ (voluntary offerings) in ‘aarti plates.’ While the order was eventually withdrawn following public outcry, the PIL argues the incident exposed the “precarious nature” of the priests’ livelihoods.
“Priests in such temples often receive no formal salary from the State and rely entirely on ‘Dakshina’; the State’s administrative order directly threatened them with starvation,” the plea alleges. It further notes a disparity in state oversight, claiming that while lakhs of temples are under government control, the same level of administrative intervention is not applied to mosques or churches.
With the 2026 inflation-adjusted cost of living index making survival increasingly difficult for marginalized staff, the petitioner has urged the court to intervene.
Alternatively, the petition seeks directions for the Centre and State governments to implement welfare measures for temple staff in the spirit of previous judgments delivered by the Allahabad High Court. The Supreme Court is expected to consider the matter in the coming weeks.
