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India: Temples of the Holy Become Coffers for the Greedy |
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Written by Ranjit Devraj
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Wednesday, 24 November 2004 |
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The recent arrest of a highly influential Hindu cleric - regarded as Hinduism's Pope - on murder charges has exposed the huge wealth amassed by India's temples, religious institutions and shrines. Adherents of the right-wing, pro-Hindu, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) believe that religious institutions and their heads should be allowed to function free of interference from the government. But others are demanding that temple books should be open to state auditors because the country has secularism as the cornerstone of its constitution. Members of the Communist Party of India (CPI), a partner in the Congress-led secular coalition that defeated the BJP in the May elections, have been particularly vocal in demanding that the vast sums of money donated by the devout to the various religious 'charities' be accounted for.
Continue story @ http://ipsnews.net/interna.asp?idnews=26416
Source: ipsnews.net
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