A legislative committee has found that large-scale encroachments have drastically reduced temple lands under the Malabar Devaswom Board to just one-eighth of their original extent, exposing serious lapses in the Board's management and protection of temple assets.
Published Nov 12, 2025 | 8:00 AM ⚊ Updated Nov 12, 2025 | 8:00 AM
The Malabar Devaswom Board, custodian of hundreds of temples across the region, now faces a controversy far larger in scale and consequence — not about gold only, but about land.
Synopsis: Vast stretches of temple property, once belonging to ancient shrines, have allegedly been encroached upon over the years, shrinking the Devaswom’s holdings to a fraction of their original extent. What began as quiet neglect has grown into a full-fledged scandal involving questions of accountability and governance.
Kerala’s temple administration is at the centre of public debate for the past few months. The Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB), which manages some of the state’s richest and most visited temples, drew national attention over the Sabarimala gold plating controversy — allegations of theft and misappropriation of gold donated for adorning the temple’s sanctum sanctorum and doors.
In the wake of the uproar, the Cochin and Malabar Devaswom Boards moved cautiously, determined to avoid similar controversies. But even as the dust around Sabarimala began to settle, a new storm has erupted in the northern region.
The Malabar Devaswom Board, custodian of hundreds of temples across the region, now faces a controversy far larger in scale and consequence.
Vast stretches of temple property, once belonging to ancient shrines, have allegedly been encroached upon over the years, shrinking the Devaswom’s holdings to a fraction of their original extent. What began as quiet neglect has grown into a full-fledged scandal involving questions of accountability and governance.
Kerala has five Devaswom Boards—Guruvayur, Travancore, Malabar, Cochin, and Koodalmanikyam—that together manage nearly 3,000 temples. Among them, the Travancore Devaswom Board oversees some of the largest and most revenue-generating temples, including the Sabarimala Dharmashastha Temple.
The Malabar Devaswom Board was formed in 2008 through the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments (Amendment) Ordinance issued by the Kerala government. Comprising nine members, the board administers temples spread across five divisions—Kasaragod, Thalassery, Kozhikode, Malappuram, and Palakkad.
These temples are categorized into Special, A, B, C and D classes based on size and revenue.
A legislative committee has found that large-scale encroachments have drastically reduced temple lands under the Malabar Devaswom Board to just one-eighth of their original extent, exposing serious lapses in the Board’s management and protection of temple assets.
According to the Legislative Committee on Local Fund Accounts, despite massive encroachments, the Board has failed to take meaningful action to reclaim the lost properties.
Expressing dissatisfaction over the Board’s inaction, the committee, chaired by MLA TP Ramakrishnan, recommended that the state government conduct a comprehensive land survey to identify encroachments and take immediate steps to recover temple lands.
The audit findings reveal a stark picture: the Malabar Devaswom Board currently holds just 3,112.20 acres for 1,341 temples, while 24,693.24 acres—nearly eight times more—have been encroached upon.
Shockingly, of this vast extent of lost land, only 3.31 acres have been recovered so far, as per data from the State Audit Department’s Devaswom Audit Wing.
”More data related to the issue is expected soon. Land encroachment is a serious concern, especially in areas under the Devaswom Boards. We need to conduct a more detailed study on the matter and invite government intervention. Without referring to the exact data, I can’t reveal much at this stage,” Ramakrishnan told South First.
Malabar Devaswom Commissioner Biju TC spoke about the practical, social, and legal complexities surrounding temple land encroachments.
”If you want to get a clear picture of the Devaswom land issue, you have to go back to the Land Reform Ordinance of Kerala’s first Communist government. Most lands, including temple properties, were vested from large landlords and redistributed under the slogan ‘land for the tillers’ It was a social revolution that shocked the country and the landed elite,” he told South First.
Biju explained that temple land is legally treated as a ”minor property,” since the deity is considered a minor.
”So it has to be dealt with like government property. If a person—especially someone from a socially backward section—occupies the land for ten years, even without documents, ownership passes to them under social reform laws. Since the Devaswom is not a vote bank, there is little political interest in reclaiming these lands.”
He pointed out that the Board has repeatedly requested a special land tribunal for Malabar Devaswom but has yet to receive a response from the government.
”In 2006, a commission comprising a district collector and retired revenue officials studied Devaswom lands, but the biggest problem remains documentation. We rely solely on data from village offices. By my assessment, we’ve already lost more than 60,000 acres of land—it’s a harsh reality” he said.
Biju also raised questions about the celebrated pattayam melas (title deed distribution drives) led by the Revenue Department.
”It’s a great initiative that gives poor people land in their names. But how many of those lands originally belonged to temples under Devaswom? Many temples lack proper land records. Only a tribunal can streamline this process” he said.
He mentioned that an upcoming bill under discussion in Kerala could provide some legal backing to safeguard temple lands.
”That’s our only hope now. Unlike the Travancore Devaswom Board, Malabar Devaswom has no centralised law—we only have supervisory powers, and each temple functions autonomously.”
According to him, even some prominent establishments have encroached on temple property, and a large section of the Nilambur teak plantation—once belonging to a temple under the Board—is now with the Forest Department.
”Several cases are still pending in the High Court. But with limited financial resources, legal battles are difficult to sustain” he said.
Biju warned that reclaiming temple lands is ”practically and legally almost impossible” without firm government intervention. ”It needs a strong political will because the consequences could affect the state’s social fabric. Even red brick mining happens on Devaswom lands without strong enforcement. We still depend on old village records, and if digital surveys replace them, many encroachments will go unrecorded” he cautioned.
”This issue cannot be resolved by the Board alone, it needs strong government support” he said.
When the committee questioned the Board about the absence of concrete recovery measures, the Devaswom Commissioner said that the responsibility for protecting temple land rests primarily with the Revenue Department.
The Commissioner added that discussions had been held with Revenue officials to establish a dedicated Land Conservancy (LC) unit exclusively for the Malabar Devaswom Board.
However, the proposal remains on paper, and no special mechanism currently exists to identify, survey, or reclaim encroached properties.
The committee’s findings highlight a larger concern over the fate of temple lands managed by the Devaswom Board, which are often vulnerable to encroachment and irregular transactions due to lack of coordination between departments. The report underlines the need for a transparent and time-bound action plan to safeguard temple assets, calling it a matter of both faith and public accountability.
A Board official said on condition of anonymity that there is no effective monitoring mechanism in place to address such issues.
”The absence of proper oversight is eroding public trust in the Devaswom Board. If there were a systematic mechanism, such large-scale land encroachments wouldn’t occur” the official said.
He added that the Kerala High Court has, in the past, intervened in temple land encroachment cases and directed that no such land be transferred without the court’s permission. The court has also clarified that the appropriate legal process for reclaiming encroached temple land lies under the Kerala Land Conservancy Act of 1957.
”Several related cases are still pending before various courts. The real problem is the lack of proper monitoring and consistent follow-up,” he noted.
(Edited by Majnu Babu).
