AI Drafter 
TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2017 (6) TMI 1380
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...., has prayed for an enquiry by an agency, other than the agency of the State, in the matter of alleged illegal transfer of property belongs to Shree Ram Janki Tapowan Mandir Trust and all other co-related actions of the Trust. 2. The case of the petitioner as it appears from the petition and the submission made, is that Shree Ram Janki Tapowan Mandir Trust is a Hindu Religious Trust and the deity is Sri Ram Jankiji. On 25.2.1948 a trust deed was executed by forming a trust for the purpose of maintaining the deity Shree Ram Jankiji and to manage the properties of the deity and the said Trust was known as "Shree Ram Janki Tapowan Mandir Trust" (hereinafter referred to as 'the Trust'). Schedule A of the said Trust contains the details and the description of the several properties, which belongs to the said Trust. The aforesaid trust deed was a registered trust deed. On12.5.1987, the trust deed was re-constituted by cancelling the earlier deed and a fresh deed was registered. Again the said trust deed was reconstituted vide registered deed dated 20.9.2005 by cancelling the earlier trust deed dated 12.5.1987. It is further case of the petitioner that by cancelling the earlier trus....
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....ed to other persons, which is in utter violation of the trust deed and is against the wishes of the founder of the trust and by suppressing the original trust deed, approval was obtained from the learned Judicial Commissioner, Ranchi. It is also alleged that Mahanth Ram Sharan Das who is only one of the members of the Trust entered into various development agreements with several persons and is selling the property of the deity. It is further alleged that maps are also being sanctioned by sanctioning authority without even going through the original Trust deeds and without taking into consideration the purpose of the trust and without considering the wishes of the founder of the Trust. It is submitted that the property of the deity cannot be misappropriated and squandered in this manner and it is a very large conspiracy on the part of some influential persons. It is lastly submitted that since the entire property belongs to the deity, who is a perpetual minor, it is the duty of the Court to protect the property of the deity. Since a large scale conspiracy with a criminal intent has been hatched by several persons to usurp and misappropriate the property of the deity, it is neces....
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.... have heard the counsel for the petitioner, the intervener, the Jharkhand State Hindu Religious Trust Board, the State, the Ranchi Municipal Corporation, Ranchi and the Counsel for the CBI and we have also gone through the records of this case. 5. The intervener has brought on record true copy of the trust deed of 1948, photocopy of deed of 1987 and photocopy of deed of 2005. The deed of 1948 clearly mentions that the deity of Shree Ram Jankiji is established in Doranda, Tapowan, Ranchi and to look after the property of the deity and for the management of the deity and its properties, the trust in the name and style of 'Shree Ram Janki Tapowan Mandir Trust" was constituted. The founder of the trust was Mahanth Shree Ram Saran Das. The said deed contains details of the several properties. Thus, it is clear that the properties were endowed to the deity and the custodian of the same is the Trust. The said trust deed does not provide for formation of a new trust after cancelling the same. In 1987, a fresh Trust deed was constituted by cancelling the deed of 1948. The said deed has also been produced by the intervener. The said trust deed of 1987 bears the reference of the trust deed....
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....ssioner, Ranchi and thus their entire action is being legalized. 7. Section 2(d) of the Jharkhand Hindu Religious Trust Act defines "Founder", which means a person who creates a religious trust. Admittedly, the trust is a religious trust under Section 2(l) of the said Act. From the deed of 1948, it is quite clear that to maintain the property of the deity and to serve the deity, the trust was created and the founder of the said trust was Mahanth Shree Ram Janki Jivan Sharan. The said deed contains the details of several properties which are admittedly a trust property in terms of Section 2(p) of the Act. Section 28(j) of the act also gives power to the Board to sanction conversion of any property of such trust into another property, if the Board is satisfied that such conversion is beneficial for the said trust. The proviso of the said sub-Section itself fixes a rider that no such conversion shall be sanctioned unless the Board so resolves by majority which includes at least three fourth of its members and resolution of the Board is approved by the District Judge. Thus from the aforementioned provision, we find that though the power is vested upon the Board to approve the conver....
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....ht of his will be affected if an order is passed in this writ petition in terms of the prayer made by the petitioner. Being a simple member of the Trust, none of his right can be hampered. His only duty is to manage the trust properties for the benefit of the deity and as per the wish of the founder. He has got no personal right as a trustee in this case. As stated earlier, this person has himself become the founder of the existing trust by changing the deed itself, which, prima facie, suggests that the intention is not pious. Subsequent action of obtaining permission from the Board and also from the learned Judicial Commissioner, Ranchi floats from the deed of 2005, whose creation itself is murky. 10. The intervener claims that the permission was granted by the Board for conversion of the landed properties of the deity vide order dated 13.6.2016 and the said order was brought on record by Annexure-1 in this Public Interest Litigation and is not disputed by anyone. The said letter is of Jharkhand State Hindu Religious Trust Board. From perusal of the said letter, it appears that pursuant to a letter of Bihar State Hindu Religious Trust Board dated 4.12.1994, the permission is gr....
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....to a prima facie conclusion. As mentioned above, in the trust deed of 1987, there was a specific bar of transfer or sale of properties. If that be the situation, then how in the year 1994, a permission was obtained and subsequent connected action was taken by the trustees to transfer the properties. All these actions genuinely create a great doubt about the intention of the trustees and, prima facie, this Court feels that the deed of 2005 was prepared against the wishes of the founder of the trust with some ulterior motive. This finding is prima facie, basing on record, which has been placed before us by the intervener itself. Thus, this Court feels that all these allegations leveled by the petitioner and all the action needs a thorough investigation, as it is a very serious allegation that the properties of the deity are being squandered by some persons, whose prime duty was to safeguard the interest of the deity. It is also the allegation that the deed of 2005 was designed for benefit of some of the persons de hors the interest of the deity. It is also necessary to investigate whether there was actual fraud committed by any person or any member of the Committee or not. 13. Fur....