P B PEDI TRUST Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) . Petitioner is Parshwanath Bhagwan's Pedi, a Public Trust represented by five trustees (hereinafter referred to as the Trust). This trust is registered under the Bombay Public Trusts Act and is an assessee under the Income-Tax Act with Permanent Account No. P. 31-00-HN-4871/Addl. A/Rev. Navsari.

(2.) . Navsari Jain temple is owned and managed by this trust. Large steel cash box, known as Bhandara, is kept in the temple to receive offerings from the devotees. The said box was last opened on October 16, 1977. Offerings put in the box remained in it till it was opened on January 19, 1978 when the Government promulgated High Denomination Bank Notes (Demonetisation) Ordinance, 1978 (hereinafter referred to as the Ordinance), which came into force on January 16, 1978. The trust sealed the cash box. Executive Committee of the trust opened the box on January 19, 1978. 76 high denomination currency notes of Rs. 1,000.00 each, were found in the said box. For getting those notes exchanged, declaration form filled up and submitted to the State Bank of India respondent No. 3 alongwith the said notes. The third respondent rejected the declaration form as per letter dated 27-7-1978 (Annexure B). Aggrieved by the same the trust took up the matter with the Central Government. The Central Government declined to exchange the said notes and the decision was communicated to the trust by letter dated 25-4-1979 (Annexure C). Hence this petition, inter alia, praying for issuance of a writ of mandamus directing respondents to pay the petitioner Rs. 76,000.00 in exchange of the 76 currency notes of high denomination value of Rs. 1,000.00 each, tendered by the petitioner under Ordinance 1978.

(3.) . On behalf of the third respondent-State Bank of India affidavit-in-reply dated 29-7-1986 has been filed. The contention taken therein is that after 16-1-1978 the trust cannot be the owner of the notes. The trust has not stated that the trust had received the notes prior to 16-1-1978. Therefore, the trust is not entitled to get the notes exchanged. The policy underlying Ordinance has been highlighted in the affidavit-in-reply.