Kurubas – Lingayats fight over temple

The High Court has remanded the case of Malingaraya/ Siddeshwar temple over to the trail court again back from the Ligayat community Trust.
It looks like the issue of the ownership of the Malingaraya/Siddeshwar temple at Melkunda village in Kalaburgi is not likely to end anytime soon. Recently Trust members of Kuruba community have challenged the right of Lingayat’s on the temple administration in High Court. Sri Malingaraya Temple Charitable Trust filed a petition against the tahsildar (also the taluk executive magistrate) and the Sri Siddeshwar Temple Trust in High Court.
A sessions court on February 18 this year, ordered the tahsildar to hand over the possession of the properties (30 acre) of the temple to the Siddeshwar Trust. The state administration had attached the properties citing an emergency. The Siddeshwar Trust claimed that one of its devotees had donated 30 acre of land to the temple and the same family was looking after it.
It was alleged that some members of the Kuruba community formed the Malingaraya Trust and and is being helped by Tahsildar to take over the temple. Tahsildar stopped a temple ‘jatre’ conducted by the Lingayats and attached the property. The actions of the Tahsildar were challenged in the Sessions court, which ruled in favour of the Siddeshwar Trust.
The Malingaraya Trust has now approached the High Court for the Right over the Temple. The ancient temple was patronised by the Kurubas for long and recently the Lingayats also favoured the temple but in a different name. The gift of land to the temple by a Lingayat is said to have triggered the current controversy.

Must read Lingyatism – An Independent Religion : Dr NG Mahadevappa