MAHANTH DHANSUKH GIRI Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The inherent limitations of the Writ Court to enter into the thicket of concurrent findings of fact is yet again the salient issue which has come to the fore in this case, referred for decision to the Full Bench. Equally at issue is the applicability or otherwise of the Bihar Land Reforms (Fixation of Ceiling Area and Acquisition of Surplus Land) Act, 1961, to agricultural land, owned by Hindu religious Maths.

(2.) The writ petitioner, Mahanth Dhansukh Giri, is the Mahanth of the Bodh Gaya Math, and it is averred that he is the common shebait of the seventeen deities on whose behalf this application is made. Admittedly, the Bodh Gaya Math is an old and renouned institution in the region, owning more than 2000 acres of agricultural land in the district of Gaya. On the petitioners own showing, the then Mahanth, Shree Krishna Dayal Giri, executed a deed of trust dated the 13th of February, 1932. This deed did not, admittedly, mention any of the deities at all. Thereby the Mahanth divested himself of the management and set up a Board of Trustees for the management of the trust properties. It is, however, sought to be denied that this deed created any trust. It is averred that the said deed (Annexure 11) was subsequently cancelled by a registered deed dated the 19th of September, 1935, and, it was the Mahanth aforesaid who continued to manage all the properties and the trust deed was not given effect to. Later, the then Mahanth Harihar Giri of the Math instituted Title Suit No. 129 of 1953, claiming the entire properties as his personal properties, which, as an extremely exceptional case, was transferred to, and, tried by, this High Court itself. By its judgment dated the 12th of March, 1955, the Court dismissed the suit holding that the properties were impressed with a public trust. Against the said decision of this High Court, Mahanth Harihar Giri filed Civil Appeal No. 484 of 1957 before the Supreme Court of India, which was later settled by a compromise decree granted by their Lordships on the 9th of September, 1957. Thereby the properties mentioned in Schedule I to the said compromise petition were held to be endowed properties of the Math, Bodh Gaya, of which the appellant was the Mahanth and were burdened with a trust of the religious and charitable nature whilst the properties mentioned in schedule II thereto were held to be the personal properties of the appellant.

(3.) It is then averred that since the 17 deities were under the management of a common shebait, namely, Nigmal petitioner and his predecessor Mahanths, there was no division of the properties betwixt them till the year 1970. However, in the said year the permission of the Board of Religious Trust was sought for the proposed arrangement of the division of the properties which was legitimately beneficial to the deities and sanction to execute a deed was obtained. Accordingly, a deed of arrangement dated the 20th of January, 1970 (annexure 12) was executed by the original petitioner, the then Mahanth Shri Shatanand Giri (since deceased), and the properties were carved out in seventeen schedules respectively allotted to the seventeen deities. It is the case that each of the 17 deities being a juristic person could hold land within the ceiling area prescribed even though the properties were not divided between them. It is averred that in making such arrangement there was no intention of defeating any provision of law including the ceiling laws.