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In or about 1895, some American Missionaries established a religious institution (Church) at Valsad for propagation of protestant faith of Christian religion and to establish and manage the churches for the people professing that faith. The object of the 'Brethren Church' was to propagate the work of the church of the brethren in western India in order to reveal Christ by means of evangelistic, educational, medical, literary, industrial school, social and charitable activities leading to the establishment of the kingdom of God. A Continuation Committee is said to have been appointed in the year 1930 by the representatives of the Brethren Church and other churches in a Round Table Conference held in New Delhi with a view to consider the modalities and other details for amalgamation of churches. The Committee is said to have worked out a broad basis for the unification of churches which was accepted by the participant churches whereupon a new committee came into being in the year 1951. The First District Church of the Brethren in India (Brethren Church) was registered as a religious society under the Societies Registration Act, 1860 bearing Registration No.1202/44; the object whereof was to promote the work of the church of the brethren in Western India with the same object wherefor the church was established. Another Round Table Conference is said to have been held in the year 1951 at New Delhi resulting in appointment of a new committee known as 'Negotiating Committee' in order to continue deliberations for the union of churches; five other associations were included in the Committee, namely, The Council of the Baptist Churches in North India, The Church of India, Pakistan, Burma and Ceylon, The Methodist Church (British and Australian Conference), The Methodist Church in Southern Asia and The United Church o Northern India. The Brethren Church (First District Church of the Brethren) was registered as a public trust in Gujarat bearing No.E-643, Bharuch in terms of the BPT Act. The Negotiating Committee made its final recommendations which came to be known as the '4th Plan of the Union' which was published in a book entitled 'Plan of Church Union in North India and Pakistan'; the principal recommendation of the Committee being that all the six uniting churches should be dissolved and united to become one church to be known as "The Church of Northern India" (hereinafter referred to as "the CNI) which should be the legal continuation and successor of the united churches and all the properties, assets, obligations etc. thereof would vest in or devolve on CNI. The booklet of the 4th Plan is said to have been circulated to the governing bodies of the uniting churches with a view to enable them to deliberate thereover and to take appropriate decision in that behalf.

Mr. Sundaram would submit that a society registered under the Societies Registration Act, 1860 and a trust registered under the BPT Act are two different entities. Whereas the activities and the dealings of the latter may fall within the exclusive jurisdiction of the authorities specified under the BPT Act, the activities of the society would be governed by the Societies Registration Act, 1860. The Civil Court, therefore, according to Mr. Sundaram, had the requisite jurisdiction to deal with the question as to whether the resolution adopted in the year 1970 resulting in dissolution and the merger of the churches was valid. Such a dispute, Mr. Sundaram would argue, is beyond the jurisdiction of the Charity Commissioner. The learned counsel would urge that once the dissolution of the Brethren Church and consequent merger in the Appellant is held to be valid, in terms of the Section 26 of the BPT Act, the Charity Commissioner is enjoined with a duty to make necessary changes in the books maintained under Section 17 of the BPT Act. Sections 31, 50, 51, 79 and 80 of the BPT Act, according to Mr. Sundaram, do not clothe the Charity Commissioner or any other authority thereunder to determine a question as regard the validity of a resolution of a society and/or its merger.

SOCIETIES REGISTRATION ACT, 1860 The Societies Registration Act was enacted, as it was found expedient that provisions should be made for improving the legal condition of societies established for the promotion of literature, science, or the fine arts, or for the diffusion of useful knowledge, the diffusion of political education and for charitable purposes.

Section 2 of the Societies Registration Act provides for memorandum of association which, inter alia, must contain the name of the society and the objects of the society. A society which is formed for charitable purpose may also carry on its activities. The words 'charitable purposes' includes religious purposes. Section 4 provides for annual list of managing body to be filed stating names, addresses and occupations of the governors, council, directors, committee, or other governing body then entrusted with the management of the affairs of the society.

BOMBAY PUBLIC TRUSTS ACT The BPT Act, on the other hand, was enacted to regulate and to make better provision for the administration of public religious and charitable trusts in the State of Bombay.

Section 2 is the interpretation clause. Section 2 (10) defines "person having interest" to include in the case of a society registered under the Societies Registration Act, 1860 any member of such society. Section 2(13) defines "public trust" to mean "an express or constructive trust for either a public religious or charitable purpose or both and includes a temple, a math, a wakf, a dharmada or any other religious or charitable endowment and a society formed either for a religious or charitable purpose or for both and registered under the Societies Registration Act, 1860. A "trustee" has been defined to mean a person in whom either alone or in association with other persons, the trust property is vested and includes a manager.