Common Order: (Ramesh Ranganathan)

1. Repeated efforts of the Government notwithstanding, a board of trustees, as mandated by Section 15(1) of the A.P. Charitable and Hindu Religious Institutions and Endowments Act, 1987 (A.P. Act 30 of 1987), has not been constituted for the Sri Venkateswara Swamy Devasthanam, Dwaraka Tirumala for the past nearly twenty five years, and Sri S.V. Sudhakara Rao, and his family members (erstwhile “hereditary trustees”), continue to remain in sole control and management of the affairs of the temple, though the office of hereditary trustee stood abolished from 23.05.1987.

2. W.P. No.27776 of 2005 is filed by Sri Yerneni Sarath Kumar, a resident of Dorasanipadu village of Dwaraka Tirumala Mandal, West Godavari District, in public interest to declare the inaction of the State Government, in not constituting a non-hereditary trust board for the fourth respondent, (Sri Venkateswara Swamy Devastanam, Dwaraka Tirumala), in accordance with Section 15 of A.P. Act 30 of 1987, as arbitrary and illegal; and to direct the 1st respondent to forthwith constitute the non-hereditary trust board for the 4th respondent temple.

3. It is convenient, hereinafter, to refer to the parties in these writ petitions as they are arrayed in W.P. No.27776 of 2005.

4. Facts, in brief, are that the 4th respondent temple was established more than 400 years ago, and was managed by the Suraneni family of Mylavaram for several decades. After A.P. Act 30 of 1987 came into force the Commissioner, Endowments, vide proceedings dated 07.06.1989, recognized the 5th respondent, and other members of his family, as the hereditary trustees of the 4th respondent temple. The Assistant Commissioner, Endowments, vide proceedings dated 03.07.1996, recognised the 5th respondent and five others as members of the founder family. Sri S.V. Sudhakar Rao, (the fifth respondent herein), submitted a representation dated 21.08.2002 seeking exemption of the 4th respondent temple from the application of Section 15 of A.P. Act 30 of 1987. The 2nd respondent, by proceedings dated 25.11.2002, forwarded the request of the 5th respondent to the Government for appropriate orders. The Government, (1st respondent), vide memo dated 17.01.2003 rejected the proposal for exemption of the fourth respondent temple from the operation of Section 15 of A.P. Act 30 of 1987. The fifth respondent filed W.P. No.16283 of 2003 questioning the action of the 1st respondent in rejecting his representation, vide memo dated 17.01.2003, as illegal. The said Writ Petition was dismissed on 19.01.2004. W.A. No.2429 of 2005, filed thereagainst, was dismissed by order dated 22.10.2007 granting liberty to the 5th respondent to file a fresh Writ Petition on the same cause of action by incorporating additional facts, and taking additional grounds. Consequently W.P. No.23870 of 2007 was filed.

5. In the meanwhile, W.P. No.26236 of 2003 was filed to direct the respondents not to constitute a board of trustees for the 4th respondent temple. The said Writ Petition was dismissed by a Division bench of this Court by its order dated 08.01.2004. The 1st respondent had issued a notification earlier, in G.O.Ms. No.2291 dated 04.12.2003, inviting applications for constitution of the trust board. W.P. No.250 of 2004 was filed questioning the said notification. This Court passed an interim order on 07.01.2004 that the constitution of the trust board would be subject to further orders. Thereafter W.P. No.2517 of 2004 was filed seeking a direction to the 1st respondent not to consider the names of seven individuals who had applied for appointment as trustees pursuant to the notification dated 04.12.2003. This Writ Petition was also dismissed by order dated 11.02.2004. The Government issued memo dated 05.05.2005 for constitution of a non-hereditary trust board despite which no such board was constituted.

6. The Government issued another notification on 16.07.2007 against which W.P. No.19950 of 2007 wa