BUDHASAO SITARAMSAO DHENGE Vs. V.G. KATGAYE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The complaint in this contempt petition is about willful disobedience/breach of the orders dated 2852012 and 462012 passed by the learned Joint Charity Commissioner, Nagpur, below Exhibits 20 and 31 respectively in exercise of his jurisdiction under Section 41A of the Bombay Public Trusts Act, 1950 in the proceedings, i.e. Application No.3 of 2010.

(2.) Assuming that there is noncompliance or disobedience of such order, the question is whether the provision of Section 2(b) of the Contempt of Courts Act, 1971 is attracted or not. The reliance is placed by Shri Chandurkar, the learned counsel for the petitioners, upon the decision of the Apex Court in the case of K. Shamrao and others v. Assistant Charity Commissioner, 2003 3 SCC 563. He has urged that the Apex Court has held that the Assistant Charity Commissioner appointed under Section 5 of the Bombay Public Trusts Act, 1950 is a 'Court' for the purposes of the Contempt of Courts Act. He further submits that Section 2(b) of the Contempt of Courts Act does not make any distinction between the orders passed in exercise of administrative power and judicial or quasi judicial power. Hence, the provision of Section 2(b) of the Contempt of Courts Act is attracted.

(3.) The provision of Section 2(b) of the Contempt of Courts Act being relevant, is reproduced below : "2(b). "civil contempt" means wilful disobedience to any judgment, decree, direction, order, writ or other process of a Court or wilful breach of an undertaking given to a Court."