The law was meant to increase government control over financial transactions, inheritance rules and other issues governing all the public trusts in the state.

The decision was taken at the Cabinet meeting today. State Law and Legislative Minister Dilip Sanghani said the Act, which was not implemented, would be repealed in the Assembly Budget session beginning February 23.

“The Cabinet Committee for review of the Public Trust Act suggested in its report to repeal the Act considering the feelings of important religious trusts. The Cabinet has approved the committee’s recommendations,” Sanghani said.

The Cabinet Committee was headed by Finance Minister Vaju Vala in which Sanghani, Urban Development Minister Nitin Patel, MoS Industry & Mines Saurabh Patel, MoS Law & Legislative Pradipsinh Jadeja and MoS Home Praful Patel were members.

A tug of war had started between the government and powerful religious trusts, VHP, Swaminarayan sect and other religious bodies and even NGOs over the issue of implementation of the new Act.

One of the loudest criticisms came from Dwarka Sharda Peeth Shankaracharya Swarupanand Saraswati, who led a group of Hindu and Jain saints to oppose the Act. He had threatened the government with “serious consequences” if the Act was not withdrawn.

The sadhus had passed a resolution for its withdrawal. Saraswati had once stood beside Modi at one of his Sadbhavana Mission fasts, but later termed the fast mission as “‘meaningless”. He had said that Modi, on one hand, refused caps from Muslim leaders, and, on the other hand, tried to clip wings of Hindu institutions and temples through this Act. Another godman, Chaitanya Shambhu Maharaj from Ahmedabad, had said, ‘’If saints can help to form governments, they can also topple them.”

The Gujarat Public Trust Act 2011 is an amended adoption of the Bombay Public Trust Act 1950 meant to regulate public trust activities. Gujarat adopted the Bombay Public Trust Act in 1960 when it was separated from Bombay state.

In March 2011, the Modi government tabled the Gujarat Public Trust (amendment) Bill in the Assembly, which passed it unanimously. The Bill was cleared by Governor Kamala Beniwal in June.