STATE OF RAJASTHAN Vs. SAJJANLAL PANJAWAT

JUDGEMENT

(1.) These five appeals are by certificate under Art. 133 (1) (a) and (c) of the Constitution and have been heard together as common questions of law were raised in all these appeals.

(2.) Civil Appeal No. 1083 of 1967 is an appeal by the State of Rajasthan against the respondents, while Civil Appeal No. 1092 of 1967 is the appeal by the respondents against the State of Rajasthan. These two appeals, which we may also refer as the first set of appeals, arise out of a writ petition filed by the respondents against the State of Rajasthan alleging that the temple of Shri Rikhebdevji, also known as Keshariyanathji temple, situated about 40 miles from Udaipur, is a Swetamber Jain temple which is under the ownership and management of Jain Shasan and has been recognized as such in official documents as well as in the firmans issued by the erstwhile State of Mewar. Notwithstanding, the position it was averred that the management of the said temple has been illegally usurped by the State of Rajasthan through the Devasthan Department for some years, and that the State of Rajasthan had applied certain provisions of the Rajasthan Public Trusts Act, 1959 - hereinafter called 'the Act' - to the said temple which contravened the fundamental rights of the respondents guaranteed under Arts. 25 and 26 of the Constitution of India. The respondents, therefore, prayed that the Court should refrain the State from enforcing provisions of the Act specified in the petition and declare them void being in contravention of the fundamental rights of the respondents guaranteed under Arts. 14, l9. 25, 26 and 31 of the Constitution of India. They also challenged Section 17 (3) of the Act on the ground that the fee levied along with the application for registration of the public trust is a tax, and therefore beyond the competence of the State Legislature. The case of the State of Rajasthan, however, was that the temple in question was not a Jain temple, but is a Hindu temple where Jains of all sects as well as Hindus of all beliefs and sects including the Bhils worship. It denied that the provisions of the Act which had been enacted to regulate and to make better provisions for the administration of public religious and charitable trusts in the State of Rajasthan were in any way violative of Arts. 25 and 26 or any other article of the Constitution. It asserted that the management of the temple was with the State of Rajasthan which had a valid and legal right to manage it, and that S. 17 (3) of the Act was valid. The High Court held that Rikhabdevji temple is a Swetamber Jain temple and is at present managed by the State of Rajasthan, that S. 17 (3) of the Act is invalid because under the Rules that have been framed under the Act an amount of Rs.5/-charged as registration fee goes to the Consolidated Fund, and is thus not a fee but a tax which the State Legislature was not competent to revs. Following the decision in another writ petition, which is the subject matter of the second set of appeals to which we shall refer presently, the High Court struck down S. 52 (1) (d) and (e) of the Act, but as the management of the temple had vested in the State prior to the Constitution, the case of Rikhabdevji was held to have been covered by S. 52 (i) (a) or (c) of the Act. In the petition relating to the second set of appeals the High Court had held that in cases of trust as are mentioned in sub-ss. (1) (a), (b) and (c) a secular State may not like to keep the management of public trusts belonging to various denominations with it and may like to transfer it to those who might be better equipped for managing it in accordance with the wishes of the founder or of the religious denomination to which the trust belongs. But that would not be violative of Art. 26 (b) and (d) of the Constitution in any way. It was of the view that S. 52 (1) (d) and (e) of the Act was invalid as S. 53 had not provided for proper safeguards for the administration of the property being left in the hands of the denomination. Even so it held that these clauses were not applicable to that case. In so far as the challenge to Ss. 30, 31, 38 to 43 of the, Act was concerned, it held them to be valid. In the result the High Court gave the directions which are contained in the following conclusion now impugned:

(3.) Civil Appeal No. 1110 (N) of 1967 is by the State of Rajasthan while appeal No. 1087 (N) of 1967 is by Shri Surajmal Singhvi. These appeals, which we may also term the second set of appeals, arise out of a writ petition filed by the respondent Surajmal Shinghvi who claims to be the Chairman of the Trust Committee of Shri Nakodaji Parasnath Tirath alleging that the administration and management of that temple was being carried on by the Trust Committee on behalf of the Swetamber Jain Sangh in which is vested the entire property of the temple consisting of buildings cash, ornaments of the idol and all other movable and immovable properties. It was claimed that according to the religious faith and belief of Jains, the properties of the said temple can only be utilised for the maintenance, upkeep and worship of the idol and for the purpose of different religious ceremonies, propagation of Jain faith and religion and for other analogous purposes which are pious, religious and charitable. It was, therefore, averred that inasmuch as the administration and management of the said temple and worship of the idol and other religious ceremonies are carried on according to the scriptures and tenets of Jain religion they do not brook any outside interference, and consequently the interference in the management of the temples and other religious institutions envisaged by the Act was against the usages and customs, principles and tenets of Jain religion. On these allegations the various provisions of the Act were challenged on the ground that they were in direct and flagrant breach of the fundamental right of religious freedom and freedom of conscience of the Jains and their right to freely profess, practice and propagate religion It was also contended that the impugned provisions imposed unreasonable restrictions on the religious denomination to maintain and manage religious institutions and to manage their own affairs in the matter of religion and to administer the property according to the Jain Shasan.