Shani Shingnapur Temple Trust Fires 167 Staffers, 68% Muslims; Sparks Debate Over Alleged Bias
Pune: FIR Registered Over Fake Shaneshwar Devasthan Apps Cheating Devotees
Temple administration cites absenteeism and non-performance; denies religious discrimination amid Hindu group pressure
The Shri Shaneshwar Devasthan Trust, which manages the iconic Shani Shingnapur shrine in Maharashtra’s Ahilyanagar district, has dismissed 167 employees, citing disciplinary issues including prolonged absenteeism and non-performance. However, the move has stirred controversy as 114 of those dismissed, approximately 68% are Muslims.
The layoffs were carried out in two phases, on June 8 and June 13, affecting employees who had served between 2 to 10 years in roles spanning agriculture, waste management, and educational departments within the trust.
Temple CEO Gorakshanath Darandale emphasized that the action was performance-based and not driven by religious identity. “There is no question of discrimination. Over 2,400 employees work with the Devasthan, and many were not reporting to duty despite repeated notices. This is the first set of disciplinary removals,” he said.
The controversy deepened after Acharya Tushar Bhosale, head of the BJP’s Spiritual Coordination Front, demanded the removal of non-Hindu employees, announcing a protest scheduled for June 14. A video had recently gone viral showing a man, allegedly not a Hindu, engaged in painting work at the shrine, prompting the Sakal Hindu Samaj to threaten protests demanding only Hindus be employed at the shrine.
One day before the scheduled demonstration, the trust convened and proceeded with the mass dismissals. Trustee Appasaheb Shete confirmed the decision and conveyed it to affected employees.
A senior temple official said, “Some of those dismissed had not attended work for over five months. We had already stopped salaries and issued show-cause notices.” He reiterated that the action followed due administrative procedure.
Still, the overlap between the timing of the sackings and external pressures from right-wing groups has raised concerns among civil society and political observers about potential communal motivations, despite the official explanation.
The Shani Shingnapur shrine, dedicated to Lord Shani, holds significant religious and cultural value. In recent years, it has also been the center of debates over tradition, access, and inclusivity,a discourse that this latest episode seems to have reignited.
