Judgment

MUDHOLKAR, J. : This is an appeal on a certificate granted by the High Court of Calcutta under Art. 133 (1)(a) and (b) of the Constitution by the first defendant to the suit, Sree Sree Kalimata Thakurani of Kalighat represented by her next friend Manik Lal Mukherjee.

2. The suit out of which the appeal arises was instituted by the plaintiffs who are respondents 1 to 5 to the appeal, under S. 92 of the code of Civil Procedure for the purpose of framing a scheme for the proper management of the seva puja of Sree Sree Kalimata Thakurani and her associated deities and, for the proper management of the properties, declared to be debuttar proparties in a previous suit. The District Judge, Alipur in whose Court the suit had been instituted settled a scheme with respect to the aforesaid matters but upon appeal by the appellant the High Court amended that scheme. The main grievance of the appellant in this appeal is regarding certain amendments to the scheme made by the High Court.

3. According to Mr. Bhattacharji, learned counsel, for the appellant, the amended scheme is defective in four respects. He contends that in the first place the scheme does not specify that 595 odd bighas of land of Kalighat are also debuttar property. In the second place it was not proper to include any shebait at all in the managing commit- tee of the endowment. Then according to him the provision made in the scheme with respect to the remuneration of the shebaits is wholly improper. Finally, that the scheme is defective as it does not make any provision reserving liberty to the parties to apply to the District Judge for directions.

4. Taking the first point, the direction made by the High Court in the scheme with respect to the properties belonging to the deity is as follows:

"The properties enumerated in Schedules A and B belong to Sree Sree KaliMata Thakurani and the associated deities of Kalimata together with such other properties as may be acquired by purchase, dedication, gift or as offerings or in any manner whatsoever are hereinafter called the Debuttar. Estate and appertain to a Hindu Public Religious Endowment. Any other property which may hereafter be found by a competent Court to belong to the Deity will a so be part of the Debuttar Estate".

Mr. Bhattacharji points out that 595 odd bighas of land in Kalighat which belong to the deity are not enumerated in either schedule A or B & says that the shebaits and their predecessors in interest, laying claims to this land, have alienated more than 90% of it. The shebaits being, merely trustees of the deity cannot be permitted to assert a claim adverse to the deity and any alienations made by them are not binding on the deity. According to him the title to these lands still remains with the deity, and therefore, they should have been mentioned at least in a separate schedule to the scheme as being the properties of the deity. On the question whether these lands belong to the deity or not there is a dispute between the parties before us. The shebaits whom Mr. Viswanatha Sastri represents deny that these lands belong to the deity and said that they were granted to the shebaits for worshipping the deity and maintaining the temple etc. In our opinion in a suit for the settlement of the scheme for the management of a temple it is not appropriate for the court to investigate questions of title to property about which there is dispute.

5. Mr. Bhattacharji then refers us to a previous litigation to which the deity was a party and in which the question of the deity s title to the lands in question was raised. The decision of the High Court in that case was reported in Iswari Kalimata v. Manager, Bijni Raj Court of Wards Estate, ILR (1949) 2 Cal 587. In particular he relies upon two observations contained in that judgment of the High Court. The first was at p. 593 (of ILR Cal) : (at p. 390 of AIR) and runs thus:

"The rubokari shows that the shebaits who took part in those proceedings made unqalified admissio