New Delhi, Apr 12 (PTI) Upkeep and management of temples should “align with scriptural injunctions and traditional practices”, rather than be governed by “state mechanisms”, a mahant of Ayodhya said here on Saturday.

His remarks came during a session on ‘Temple Management in Indian Society’ held on the second day of the three-day Ayodhya Parv being held at the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA).

Mahant Avdhesh Das of Bada Bhaktmal, Ayodhya said the “upkeep and management of temples must align with scriptural injunctions and traditional practices, rather than be governed by state mechanisms”.

He further said while “religion may shape” the course of politics, it is not for politics to “define or dictate religion”.

Historian and scholar Bharat Gupta suggested that temples can be “best managed by adherents of the traditions they represent, not by external administrative bodies”.

The IGNCA issued a statement quoting the remarks made by them at the Ayodhya Parv session. Both speakers were addressing the first session of the day.

Gupta said it is “fortuitous” that a non-governmental trust has been constituted for the Ram Janmabhoomi site, whereas elsewhere across the country, numerous prominent temples remain under direct governmental control, according to the statement.

In the evening session, the focus shifted to a contemplative session on ‘Contribution of Goswami Tulsidas in the Innovation of Indian Culture’.

The session was attended by Mahant Mithilesh Nandini Sharan of Hanuman Niwas, Ayodhya; Chandan Chaubey, a professor at Delhi University; art and theatre critic Jyotish Joshi; litterateur Umesh Prasad Singh; and Dean (Academic), IGNCA, Professor Pratapanand Jha, it said. PTI KND SKY SKY