Why Shirdi Sai Baba Temple wants to deposit 200 kg gold with government - Read

Picture for representation. Photo: PTI

Mumbai: If reports are to be believed the Shirdi Sai Baba temple is willing to contribute 200 kg of its gold to the Central government's Gold Monetisation Scheme. 

According to a report in the Times of India, the Sai Baba temple caretakers want to deposit 200kg gold with the government, but the glitch is the Bombay High Court ban on the temple trust from melting the gold that has been offered by the devotees over the years.

In March 2012, the Bombay High Court has disbanded the 15-member committee, which manages the Sai Baba temple at Shirdi,  and had appointed a three-member panel after a PIL by two Shirdi residents. 

The court had also banned the temple committee from auctioning the gold, silver and diamond articles which the temple had received from devotees after a petition argued that the valuable were offered to the god, not to the temple for raising money from them. 

Shirdi Sai Baba temple is the one of the richest shrines in the country, owns about 380 kg of gold in total. 

According to an estimate, if the temple authorities manage to invest in the government's scheme, it will earn them an annual return of Rs 1.25 crore as interest.  

At present the temple has an annual turnover of the Rs 350 crore through various sources.