Mathura: Banke Bihari temple's treasury room opens after 49 years
Mathura (UP) (PTI): The 'Toshkhana' (treasury) of the Banke Bihari temple in Mathura, which had been locked since 1971, was opened on Saturday on the orders of a high-powered committee constituted by the Supreme Court.
The 'Toshkhana' is the room located adjacent to the temple's sanctum sanctorum.
The Supreme Court, in its August 2025 order, had constituted a 12-member high-powered interim committee headed by retired Allahabad High Court judge Ashok Kumar to look after the day-to-day affairs of the temple.
"The room was opened under the supervision of a civil judge junior division with other members, including four Goswami members. There was some difficulty in opening the room. The process started at 1 pm and was finished at 5 pm, when the room was sealed again. Some brass utensils and wooden items were found, and no precious metal was found. Some boxes and wooden boxes were also found," ADM (Finance and Revenue) Dr Pankaj Kumar Verma said.
Most of the work is complete, the room may be opened on the next date decided by the civil judge junior division for completion of the remaining work, the ADM said.
The auditor's team has made an inventory of the items found in the room, he added.
The Goswami community was opposing the move. A member of the high-powered committee, Shailendra Goswami, said the room shouldn't have been opened in the first place. "I have opposed the move and even wrote letters," he said.
"This is an interim committee, not a permanent one; the Honourable Supreme Court constituted it to ensure facilitation of 'darshans' to devotees only. The committee should not interfere elsewhere. They are taking undue advantage and usurping authority. Why are they opening the room, and what do they want to prove?" Shailendra Goswami said.
Echoing their concern, Supreme Court lawyer and temple sewayat (servitor) Sumit Goswami said this interim committee was not given the powers to open the 'Toshkhana'; they were supposed to look after the devotees' concerns, and ensure the ease of 'darshan' of Shree Bankey Bihari Thakur.
Moreover, live streaming of the process was not done, he claimed.
However, Shailendra Goswami said that videography was done. One Goswami member of the high-powered committee, Srivardhan Goswami, was not present due to health reasons, he added.
Gyanendra Goswami, a functionary at the Banke Bihari temple, raised concerns about the opening of the room, and said the process should have been undertaken in a more transparent way.
He also asked why the media was not allowed. The committee forgot the prime objective laid by the honourable apex court during its formation, that is to upgrade the facility for devotees, he said.
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NEET student hangs self in Rajasthan's Sikar
Jaipur (PTI): A student preparing for the NEET examination allegedly committed suicide by hanging himself in a rented room in Rajasthan's Sikar on Friday, police said.
According to the police, the student allegedly hanged himself from a ceiling fan using his sister's scarf while one sister was attending coaching classes and the other was in the bathroom.
He had appeared in the NEET UG exam 2026, which was cancelled due to paper leak, they said.
Udyog Nagar SHO Rajesh Kumar said that the deceased, identified as Pradeep Meghwal, was a resident of Kanika ki Dhani village in Jhunjhunu's Gudha Gaudji area.
He had been living in a rented room in Sikar's Jaldhari Nagar area with his two sisters while preparing for NEET over the last three years.
His elder sister later found him hanging and informed the landlord and police after bringing him down, officials said.
The SHO said the body was kept at SK Hospital mortuary, and a postmortem had not been conducted.
The student's father, Rajesh Kumar Meghwal, told police that Pradeep's NEET examination had gone well and the family was expecting him to score around 650 marks.
Former Rajasthan deputy chief minister Sachin Pilot expressed grief over the incident and linked it to anxiety among students after reports of irregularities and paper leaks in NEET 2026.
Pilot said repeated paper leak incidents and cancellation of examinations were affecting students' mental health and demanded a time-bound investigation and strict action against those responsible.
