Hamirpur's Baba Balak Nath Temple trust working under lens; 2 employees arrested

Baba Balak Nath Temple Trust that looks after the upkeep of famous Baba Balak Nath temple in the district is under a cloud following alleged financial embezzlement of donations made by devotees. The police arrested two employees of the trust in this regard yesterday. It has been learnt that there were serious allegations of embezzlement of funds donated in various currencies, including US dollars.

Bhagat Singh Thakur, Superintendent of Police, in a press release issued here, said that the police had apprehended Keshav Dutt, a junior assistant (counting clerk), and Gurchain Singh, an accountant, with the trust following the complaints of misappropriation of funds donated to the temple.

The SP said that both were produced before the court. They have been remanded to police custody till October 10.

Meanwhile, many trustees of the trust had levelled serious issues against the trust administration. Arvinder Kaur, a trustee, said that the officers sitting in temple trust are very irresponsible and temple officer should also be made accountable to the financial irregularities. Rajesh Banyal, another trustee, said that the working of trust must be fair and transparent.

Notably, the total donation was over Rs 35 crore in 2024 while in March 2025 alone it was over Rs 47.35 lakh during the annual Chaitra Mela. This did not include the value of precious metal or foreign currency donations.