( 1 ) THE petitioner in this writ petition under Arts. 226 and 227 of the Constitution has challenged the orders made by the Special Deputy Commissioner for Inams Abolition, Tumkur, as per Annexure-G and the Land Tribunal, Tumkur, as per Annexure H and she has sought for quashing the same for the reasons set out in the writ petition.

( 2 ) THE undisputed facts as disclosed in the pleadings are as follows :- 3 acres 13 guntas of land in Sy. No. 192 situated in Tumkur Amanikere, Tumkur Taluk and District, was originally owned by one Smt. Lakshmidevamma, the great grand mother of the petitioner herein. According to the geneology at Annexure-A, the petitioner Sumitra is the daughter of T. K. Siddanarasaiah, grand son of Lakshminaranappa whose elder brother's son Karigiraiah's wife is Lakshmidevamma, the donor. Thus, the petitioner is the descendant of the said Laxmidevamma. Laxmidevamma had intended to gift the land in favour of Sri Laxminarasimha Swamy Devaru, the temple of which is situated at Devarayanadurga, Tumkur Taluk. Accepting the offer of gift as valid, the Deputy Commissioner, Tumkur, made a recommendation to the Government for issuing appropriate orders. On the said recommendation of the Deputy Commissioner, then Government of Mysore, by its order No. 880/muz. 196-08-2 dated 23-1-1909, accepted the offer of intended gift by Laxmidevamma and directed execution of the gift deed in the following terms :-". . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2. In these circumstances, the Government are pleased to sanction the Deputy Commissioner's recommendation. A deed of gift should be duly executed by Lakshmidevamma and her agnates and registered. The patta of the land may then be made out in the name of the deity and the land leased to Lakshmidevamma or her agnates on condition of paying the Government kandayam and conducting the stipulated service of abhisheka and Santarpane on the Davanotsava day during the jatra. If the necessity should arise for commuting the service and fixing the service rent in cash, the order of Government should be obtained. Sd/- x x for Secretary to Govt. , revenue Dept. "thus, permission to have the gift deed registered in favour of the deity Sri Lakshminarasimhaswamy had been granted subject to the conditions contained in the Government Order REFERRED TO above.

( 3 ) IN deed, it is necessary to mention here that before accepting the gift, the said Laxmidevamma died and passed away. Therefore, the gift deed was executed by Narasimhaiah s/o Lakshminarayanappa, younger brother of Lakshmidevamma's father-in-law. That deed of gift came to be registered in the office of the Sub-Registrar, Tumkur, on 20-11-1916 in No. 1140, Book-I, Volume-198. These facts are not in dispute.

( 4 ) PURSUANT to the execution of the gift deed, necessary entries came to be made in the record of rights in the name of the deity Sri Lakshminarasimhaswamy as can be found from Annexure-D, extract of record of rights. Even the Index of Lands produced at Annexure-E goes to show that the land came to be owned by Devarayanadurgada Narasimhaswamy. It is therefore undisputed that by virtue of the gift of the land made in favour of the deity Sri Lakshminarasimhaswamy, Laxmidevamma, donor, ceased to be the owner of the gifted land, and consequently the land came to vest in the State, the deity Sri Lakshminarasimhaswamy being the owner thereof. However, the Government, as is even from the Government order, leased the land back to Lakshmidevamma or his agnates only on condition of paying Government the kandayam and conducting the stipulated service viz. , Abhisheka and Santharpane on the Davanotsava day during Jatra. So excepting to that extent, no other rights had been saved in her favour in respect of the land in question.

( 5 ) IT is stated that on the death of Lakshmidevamma, her successors-in-title had been cultivating the land in terms of the Government Order and rendering service to the temple in doing Abhisheka and