For more than fourteen years, Pandit Brijesh Raval has served the Hindu Temple and Jain Center of Las Vegas ("Temple"). He was hired in 2011, began as Temple Priest on January 1, 2012, and has served without interruption ever since. He has never been disciplined.
Panditji is at the Temple every day except on his days off. He lights the morning and evening aarti, performs the daily pujas for our deities, and cares for the altars. He opens and closes the Temple doors. As the senior priest, Panditji has led our Navratri and Diwali celebrations for fourteen years.
He has been part of our families' most important moments: naming ceremonies, sacred-thread ceremonies, weddings, house blessings and last rites. Many families have called on him for every ceremony for more than a decade, and devotees ask for him by name.
Panditji has practiced as a Hindu priest for more than thirty-five years. He trained in India and taught Vedic ritual to other priests before coming to Las Vegas. He holds a Ph.D. in Karmakand (Vedic religious ritual) and Jyotish (Vedic astrology).
Panditji supports his wife and their two children through his employment with the Temple.
The lawsuit
On August 25, 2026, a lawsuit was filed against Panditji and the Temple in the Clark County District Court.
Radhika Janga v. The Hindu Society of NevadaCase No. A-26-954935-C · Clark County District Court
The lawsuit asks the court to:
- remove Panditji as Temple Priest,
- stop his salary,
- require the return of Temple property, and
- order an accounting.
The plaintiff contends that Panditji's employment term ended on December 31, 2025. Panditji disagrees. In his sworn declaration, he states that he never signed an employment agreement with an end date and that he has served continuously since 2012. Panditji's sworn declaration is corroborated by the declarations of six other individuals.
If Panditji is removed, his family would lose its income and health insurance at once. There are few, if any, positions for a priest of his training in Las Vegas outside our Temple, so our community could lose him for good.
Our Temple's leaders stand with him
The Temple's President and five members of the Board of Trustees have filed sworn declarations supporting Panditji. Each confirmed that, to their knowledge, Panditji never signed an employment agreement with the Temple or any document setting an end date to his service. On October 2, 2026, those five trustees asked the court to let them join the case.
Our By-Laws ask us to resolve this as a family
Section 12.3 of the Hindu Society of Nevada By-Laws provides that disputes go first to good-faith mediation and then to arbitration. The plaintiff's own complaint acknowledges this requirement. Panditji has asked the court to dismiss the case or, in the alternative, to send it to the process our By-Laws provide.
How you can help
- Sign the petition asking that this lawsuit be withdrawn, and share this page with your family and friends.
- Join us for Navratri, beginning October 11, and Diwali on November 8.
- Please speak of everyone in our community with kindness.
