Judgment

GAJENDRAGADKAR, C.J.I. - The principal point of law which arises in this appeal is whether the Sanad issued in favour of the appellant, Rajkumar Narsingh Pratap Singh Deo, by his elder brother, the Ruler of Dhenkanal State, on March 1, 1931, is existing law within the meaning of Art. 372 of the Constitution read with Cl. 4(b) of Order No. 31 of 1948 issued by the respondent State of Orissa on January 1, 1948. This question arises in this way. The State of Dhenkanal which was an independent State prior to 1947 merged with the Province of Orissa in pursuance of a Merger Agreement entered into between the Ruler of Dhenkanal and the Dominion of India of December 15, 1947. This Agreement came into force as from January 1, 1948. In consequence of this Agreement, the entire administration of the State of Dhenkanal was taken over by the State of Orissa pursuant to the authority conferred on it by the Central Government under S. 3 (2) of the Foreign Jurisdiction Act 1947 (No. 47 of 1947). After the Sanad in question was issued in favour of the appellant, he was getting a monthly allowance of Rs. 500/- from the Dhenkanal District Treasury on the authority of a permanent Pay Order which had been issued in his favour by the Ruler of Dhenkanal on the basis of the said Sanad. This payment was discontinued by the respondent from 1st May, 1949 and the several representations made by the appellant to the various authorities of the respondent to reconsider the matter failed. That is why he filed the present suit on September 26, 1951 in the Court of the Subordinate Judge, Dhenkanal, alleging that the act of discontinuing the appellant s pension was illegal, and asking for appropriate reliefs in that behalf. It is from this suit that the present appeal arises.

2. The appellant s case is that in the family of the appellant, it has been recognised as a customary right of the junior members of the family to receive adequate maintenance consistently with the status of the family. Indeed, the appellant s allegation is that this custom was recognised in Dhenkanal and enforced as customary law in the State. The grants made to the members of the Royal Family for their maintenance consisted of lands and cash allowances. These latter were described as Kharpost allowances and they were charged and paid out of the revenue of the former State of Dhenkanal. It was in accordance with this customary law that the Sanad in question was issued by the Ruler of Dhenkanal in favour of the appellant. By this Sanad, certain lands were granted to the appellant and a cash allowance of Rs. 500/- per month was directed to be paid to him for life. The appellant s grievance is that this grant of Rs. 500/- allowance has been discontinued by the respondent and that, according to the appellant, is an illegal and unconstitutional act. In support of his plea that the respondent was bound to continue the payment of the cash allowance, the appellant urged in his suit that the grant was a law within the meaning of Art. 372 and as such, it had to be continued. He also alleged that after the merger of Dhenkanal with Orissa, his right to receive the grant was recognised by the respondent and acted upon; and that is another reason why he claimed an appropriate relief in the form of an injunction against the respondent. Several other pleas were also taken by the appellant in support of his claim, but it is not necessary to refer to them for the purpose of the present appeal.

3. The respondent denied the appellant s claim and urged that having regard to the nature of the grant on which the appellant has rested his case, it was competent to the respondent to discontinue the grant. The grant in question is not law under Art. 372 and just as it could be made by the Ruler in 1931 by an executive act, it can be discontinued by the respondent by a similar executive act since the respondent is the successor of the Ruler. It was also urged by the respondent that the appellant s allegation t