MRA CHAUPHURI Vs. RAMNARAYAN JHA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE contempt application was filed for alleged violation of the interim order dated 1st October 1985 passed by this court in C. O. No. 13552 (W) of 1985 against Sri Ramnarayan jha, Additional collector, Land Ceiling. Ranchi. Bihar on 1st October 1985 on the writ application filed by the writ petitioner. The following interim order was passed -

(2.) THE case of the petitioner in the writ application was that the petitioners were the trustees of the Charitable Educational Trust under the name of sarasibala Debi Trust created under a deed of trust dated 29th March 1966 which was registered at Calcutta. The said trust holds several properties including the property at Ranchi where the trust has established, set up and is running a free charitable primary school in village Gari. District Ranchi for the benefit of poor and backward Adibassi children residing in the adjoining villages. The School was set up to carry out the object of the said trust. The relevant provisions of the said Trust deed were that the net Income of the trust property shall be used and appliied for charitable purpose without reference to caste and creed and to help and promote education and learning, including primary. higher and college education for boys and girls etc. The other object of the trust was to give monetary help to educational institutions including libraries, pathsalas. Fine Art Classes etc. and also to give doles to poor students in cash or in kind, free food and the like. In short the purpose of the trust was wholly public and charitable. In the said free primary charitable institution about 100 Adibasi students read and there are more than two teachers whose remunerations are. paid out of the income of the trust and donation by the trustees made from time to time. The main income is derived from the house rent in premises no. 2. Hazaribagh Road. Ranchi. being the property of the trust which at present in under the occupation of the Animal husbandry Department of the Government of Bihar. Apart from the building occupied by the Animal Husbandry Department there is land measuring 6. 33 acres, a portion of which is earmarked for the purpose of setting up 'surendranath Centenary School for which steps have been taken and is in a fairly advanced stage to accordance with the provisions of the trust deed. It may be mentioned that Sarasibala Devi in whose name the trust was created, was a daughter of Rastraguru Surendranath Banerjee and mother of Ranadeb chaudhury, the propounder and founder of the said trust. The property which was the subject matter of the proceedings was the original property of late rastraguru Surendranath Banerjee and subsequently purchased by his grandson Sri Ranadeb Chaudhury for the purpose of setting up an education complex and made it over to Sarasi Bala Devi Trust for advancement of education through the said Public Charitable Trust. The said trust was duly registered with the Registrar of Assurances and Income Tax department as a charitable trust. For the purpose of setting up the said Centenary School at ranchi the trust had kept in deposit a sum of Rupees ten lakhs in the State bank of lndia, Ranchi. It was also pointed out that the said Animal Husbandry department had been regular defaulters in the payment of rent; they totally stopped payment of any rent from March 1982. Under such circumstances, the said trust instituted a suit for eviction in the District Court at Ranchi on the ground of default and personal requirement for the purpose of setting up the said school. It is stated that evidences of both parties were taken and the matter was fixed for final disposal on 14th October 1985. The Government pleader, however, on the 14th October, 1985 challenged the Petitioner's right to hold onto the property and preceded to cross examine P. W. 2, Shri Jasodeb chaudhury as no return had been filed under section 6 (1) of the Urban Land (Ceiling and Regulation) Act, 1976. Immediately before they had induced the land Ceiling authorities to serve Notice on the Managing Trustee of Sarasi Bala debi Trust for prosecution Under section 38 of the Urban Land (Ceiling and regulation) Act, 1976 bearing dates. 31-8-1985/3-9-1985 which formed the basis of challenge in the present Writ petition.

(3.) IN fact the petitioner had submitted a return under Section 6 (1) of the urban Land (Ceiling and Regulation) Act 1976 within the time fixed by the said act. It. is stated that the Animal Husbandry Department after taking adjournment from the Civil Court in the said eviction case moved the Urban land Ceiling Department to take over the property from the trust suppressing the fact that the properly in question was held by a Public Charitable educational Trust which is exempted under Section 19 of the Urban Land (Celling and Regulation) Act. 1976 and was also a horticultural property. The said Land Ceiling authorities recorded in the impugned notice that the said authority has been informed that the trust holds 10. 50 acres and 5. 37 acres of land respectively under plot nos. 714 and 716 in Khata no. 160 Thana No. 194, Mouza Gari.