DHYAN SINGH Vs. CHANDRADIP SINGH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE appellants brought a suit on the 7th of January, 1950, for a declaration that they had perpetual mukarrari interest in the property in suit described in Schedule 1 of the plaint, and that they were entitled to get the property which was in the custody of the Sub -divisional Officer, Barh, after the same was attached under Section 146 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. The property involved in the suit was 16.35 acres in village Berna Gossain Nath, Pargana Pillich, thana Buktiarpur in the district of Patna.

(2.) THE plaintiffs are the members of a Hindu joint family governed by the Mitakshara School of which the plaintiff No. 1 is the karta. One Baldeogir was impleaded originally as defendant No. 6, but he was expunged by an order of the Court at the instance of the plaintiffs on the 10th of January, 1951; so also another defendant No. 8, Mt. Deolagan Devi, was expunged. No relief was sought particularly against defendant No. 7. We are thus left with defendants 1 to 5 who were parties to a proceeding under Section 145, Criminal Procedure Code, as against the plaintiff. The plaintiffs' case was that Baldeogir was the absolute owner of the rent free lands in khata Nos. 135 to 138 of village Berna Gossain Math. He was a devotee of God Shiva but the properties were his own and he treated them as such like his predecessors -in -interest. The deity installed in the Math premises was a private one. Neither the defendants nor any member of the village public had any concern with the suit rent free lands or the management and worship of the deify.

(3.) DEFENDANTS 1 to 5 filed a joint written statement and pleaded, besides limitation and defect of parties, that the suit lands formed a. public endowment having been dedicated to Lord Shiva (Shri Shri Bichitra Nathji Maharaj) by the landlords of the village, and that Baldecgir, like his predecessors -in -interest was a mere shebait. Neither the property nor its income were ever treated as private property by any of the Goassains. The origin of the endowment was shrouded in antiquity, but the property from generation to generation was treated as the property of the deity. As Baldeogir began to misconduct himself and misappropriate the property about the year 1348 Fasli, the Hindu public of the village Berna elected the defendants as members of a committee to supervise and manage the property in 1350 Fasli. The committee tried to reform Baldeogir but they failed. However, Baldeogir left the village with his concubine for Machhardiha and since then he had no interest left in the suit properties of the deity; nor was he in possession of the same.