The Madhya Pradesh government has directed the management committee of the Maa Sharda temple in Maihar town of the Satna district to remove two Muslim employees from their positions, NDTV reported on Wednesday.

The two Muslim employees have been working at the temple since 1988. They are now set to lose their jobs on the basis of an order, which has been issued even as the state government rules that say no employee can be removed on the grounds of religion.

The Madhya Pradesh government’s ministry of religious trusts and endowments had on January 17 ordered the removal of the two Muslim employees. On April 5, a letter signed by Pushpa Kulesh, a deputy secretary in the ministry, directed Satna Collector Anurag Verma to ensure that the order was implemented.

The collector, who also heads the temple management committee, said that action will be taken as per the rules. The ministry had also directed the collector to implement a directive to remove shops selling meat and liquor from the town.

The orders have been issued after members of Hindutva organisations Vishwa Hindu Parishad and Bajrang Dal submitted a memorandum to Madhya Pradesh Minister for Religious Trusts and Endowments Usha Singh Thakur, according to Patrika. On March 1, the minister took cognisance of the memorandum and directed officials to take prompt action in the matter.

The town of Maihar has long been associated with musician Baba Alauddin Khan, who often played the sarod in front of the deity at the Maa Sharda temple. Several acclaimed classical musicians – including Ravi Shankar, Nikhil Banerjee, Annapurna Devi and Ali Akbar Khan – were Alauddin Khan’s students.