Batu Caves temple management illegal?

The Sri Maha Mariamman Temple Charity, which manages the Batu Caves temple, is not registered with the Registar of Societies

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian Hindus are all set to celebrate the Hindu festival Thaipusam tomorrow, which is one of the nation’s most colourful celebration.

Batu Caves has been the focal point of Thaipusam celebrations in the country the past 120 years and the Sri Maha Mariamman Temple Charity has been the organiser of the festival for the past 84 years.

But what is not known by many is that the organiser, better known as the Mariamman Devasthanam, is not registered with Registrar of Societies (ROS).

And a check by FMT with the Federal Territories ROS office confirmed it. The Mariamman Devasthanam was formed in Nov 28, 1930 following a court order.

It is learnt that the then Selangor Supreme Court gave its consent for the management to form a charitable trust to take care of three temples, including Batu Caves, and its properties.

However, the Home Ministry recently announced that any organisation which wants to carry out activities in Malaysia must be registered with the ROS in accordance with the Societies Act 1966.

The ministry also declared that any organisation which does not meet the requirement can be considered illegal under Section 41(1) of Societies Act.

They must register themselves

The statement was made following the ban on the coalition of NGOs, Comango, last week.

A ROS officer by the name of Kamarulzaman, based in Putrajaya, said that any charitable trust not registered with the ROS can be considered as an illegal entity.

“Whether they (Mariamman Devasthanam) were formed before or after Independence is not important. As long they operate in Malaysia, they must register themselves with us,” said Kamarulzaman.

He added that ROS will investigate the Mariamman Devasthanam if someone lodged an official report.

Meanwhile, the trust secretary RT Sundram admitted that they have not been submitting their annual general meeting (AGM) reports to the ROS.

“We are a charitable trust formed based on a court order. Thus, it is unnecessary for the committee to register with the ROS,” he said.

Apart from the Sri Subramaniar temple in Batu Caves, the Mariamman Devasthanam also manages the Sri Maha Mariamman Temple, Kuala Lumpur and the Sri Ganesar Temple located in Jalan Pudu.