Chattisgarh High Court
Aadi Shakti Maa Mahishasur Mardini ... vs The State Of Chhattisgarh on 7 April, 2022
1
NAFR
HIGH COURT OF CHHATTISGARH, BILASPUR
WPC No. 838 of 2022
• Aadi Shakti Maa Mahishasur Mardini Dharmik Evam Jan-Kalyan Trust
Chaiturgarh (Lafa) Block Pali, District Korba, Chhattisgarh Through Its
President Shri Laxmi Narayan Singh, S/o Late Shri Khem Singh, Aged About
77 Years, R/o Village Podi, Tehsil Pali, District : Korba, Chhattisgarh
---- Petitioner
Versus
1. The State Of Chhattisgarh Through Collector, Korba, District Korba,
Chhattisgarh
2. The Sub Divisional Officer (R) Katghora And The Registrar Of Public Trust
Under The Chhattisgarh Public Trust Act, 1951, District : Korba, Chhattisgarh
3. The Tehsildar, Pali, Katghora, District Korba, Chhattisgarh
---- Respondents
For Petitioner : Shri. Sushil Dubey and Mr. Aman
Upadhyay, Advocate
For Respondent/State : Shri Aditya Tiwari, PL
S.B. - Hon'ble Shri Justice Rajendra Chandra Singh Samant Order On Board 07.04.2022 Heard on petition as also on application for grant of interim relief.
1. It is submitted that the petitioner is a religious trust registered under the Registration of Societies Act, 1993. Due to resignation of the treasurer and managing trustee of the trust, the management of the trust was about to conduct election for the vacant posts, when an ex-caretaker of the trust wrote a letter dated 26.06.2020 to the Collector, District - Korba for making alternative administrative committee of the trust. On receiving 2 of this letter, the Collector Korba appointed the Tehsildar, Pali as the administrator for the trust without informing the existing members of the trust of the petitioner trust. Subsequent to that an administrative committee has also been constituted without the consent of the member trustees. The President of the petitioners' trust made a representation in objection to the Collector, Korba and SDO, Katghora to which the Collector has not responded. The Respondent No.3/Tehsildar has passed the impugned order Annexure-P/1 directing that the election, ceremony, withdrawal, sale-purchase etc. has to be made only with the permission of Respondent No.3 which is bad in law and the respondent No.3 has no such authority either under Section 22/23 or Section 25 of the C.G. Public Trusts Act, 1951. Relying on the judgments of Madhya Pradeshh High Court in the Writ Appeal No.1081/2020 between Badri Prasad Tiwari Vs. State of M.P. and others, it is submitted that the impugned order be set aside and the respondent authorities be directed to conduct election of the trust for filling of the post which have fallen vacant.
2. Learned State counsel appearing for the respondents submits that the respondents No. 2 and 3 have exercised their power under the C.G. Public Trust Act, 1951, the petitioner himself have resigned from the post, subsequent to which he is pursuing this petition, hence, this petition is without any merit and which may be disposed of.
3. Considering on the submissions, respondent No.3 is exercising the delegated power of the Registrar under the Act of 1951. Section 25 of the Act of 1951 provides as follows:-
''25. Filling of vacancies. - (1) Where a public trust is under the management of a Board of Trustees, the working trustee shall, as soon as a vacancy occurs in the Board, inform the Registrar of such vacancy 3 and the time within and the manner in which he proposes to fill the same. (2) On receipt of such information the Registrar may, if he considers it necessary, issue any directions to the working trustee regarding the filling of such vacancy not inconsistent with any instrument of trust or the mode of succession specified in the register and the working trustee shall comply with any such direction. (3) If the working trustee fails to give any such information or to fill the vacancy within the time specified by him or to comply with any direction issued by the Registrar, the Registrar may, by order passed in writing, fill the vacancy and any person having interest in the public trust who may be aggrieved by the order of the Registrar, may apply to the Court for setting aside the order of the Registrar within thirty days from the date of such order.'' It is the duty of the working trustee to inform the Registrar about the vacancies which appear to has not been done in this case. Section 25 (2) of the Act of 1951 provides the Registrar on receiving the information shall proceed to fill up the vacancy in the manner which shall not be inconsistent with the instrument of trust or on the mode of succession specified in the register. In the present case, the copy of trust deed has been filed which is Anenxure-P/2. There is provision in the trust deed under the head Nyas Sanchalan, that in case of any vacancy, the same shall be filled up by an election. Hence, the respondent No.2 and 3 are required to follow these conditions present in the instrument of the trust to conduct election of the petitioner trust.
4. After considering on the submissions, the petition is allowed and is disposed of, at motion stage itself. The respondents No. 2 and 3 are directed to conduct election for the vacant post present in the petitioners' trust at the earliest, in accordance with Section 25 of the Act of 1951 and also in accordance with the terms that are present in the trust deed.
Sd/-
(Rajendra Chandra Singh Samant) Judge yasmin