Won ISKCON's long fight for Prabhupada's legacy, says temple president Madhu Pandit Dasa
'They can no longer expel thousands of devotees who wish to accept only Srila Prabhupada as the sole acharya of ISKCON,' he said, reiterating that Prabhupada had set up a Ritvik system where all devotees would remain his disciples even after his passing.
The Supreme Court's verdict on Friday marks the end of a 24-year legal and ideological battle between the ISKCON societies of Bengaluru and Mumbai. The apex court upheld ISKCON-Bangalore's independent legal identity and confirmed that the temple land had been allotted to it by the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) in 1988. The court also barred ISKCON-Mumbai from interfering in the administration or affairs of the Bangalore society.
What triggered the dispute was the question of spiritual succession within ISKCON after Srila Prabhupada's Maha Samadhi in 1977. ISKCON-Bangalore has long opposed the idea of self-appointed successors or 'gurus' leading the organisation. According to them, Srila Prabhupada had clearly outlined a Ritvik initiation system, under which he would remain the sole initiating spiritual master for all time, with representatives performing ceremonies on his behalf.
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