BRIDGEWATER, April 27, 2007: State Superior court Judge Victor Ashrafi has dismissed the first two counts of the Hindu Temple and Cultural Center’s lawsuit against the Board of Adjustment, according to a decision posted Thursday. The temple was seeking to overturn the board’s May 2006 rejection of expansion plans that would have included housing for priests and a cultural center. However, still to be decided are three counts of the temple’s suit alleging violations of the federal Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act which were separated from the land use complaints last summer. Ashrafi found that the board’s decision was not arbitrary, capricious or unreasonable. The judge said there was enough evidence to support the board’s denial of the application.
Madhusudhan Rao Chava, Hindu Temple and Cultural Center chairman, said he needed to consult with the attorney and temple members about the decision. “It’s a surprise to us,” Chava said. “The case is not closed yet.” The Board of Adjustment has denied the temple’s plans to expand its cultural center three times. The temple was seeking a variance from the township’s lot coverage regulation. The temple attorney alleged the Board of Adjustment was biased against the Hindu faith, according to Ashrafi’s summary of the case. The judge found that claim to be false. “The Board’s concern was with the degree of expansion and intensity of the use proposed,” Ashrafi wrote in the opinion. The temple is located at route 202/206 and Old Farm Road. The only access is from Old Farm Road, a residential street. Its neighbor to the south is Sanofi-Aventis, a pharmaceutical company. Homes border the temple’s north and west sides.