Trustees cannot unilaterally remove a permanent trustee without proper authority and adherence to legal procedures outlined in the Maharashtra Public Trusts Act.

JUDGMENT :

ARUN R. PEDNEKER, J.

1. Rule. Rule made returnable forthwith. With consent of parties heard finally.

2. All these petitions are taken up together as they are inter connected and relates to sequential change reports filed of the Petitioner / Trust under Section 22 of the Maharashtra Public Trusts Act.

Writ Petition No.9544 of 2025 relates to Change Report No.557/2003, whereby removal of the trustee Milind Govind Kshirsagar was reported by trustee Vitthal Laxman Atre. At the relevant time the other trustees were Madhukar Narhar Phadke (Secretary), Suhas Gangadhar Bhagwat, Sharad Ramchandra Pendse, Vilas Vinayak Dange, Vitthal Laxman Atre, Sudhir Malhar Kulkarni and Shrikant Nagesh Dharmadhikari.

Writ Petition No.9565 of 2025 relates to Change Report No.750 of 2003, whereby the reporting trustee Vitthal Laxman Atre reported a new appointment of Sudhir Vinayak Kshirsagar in the vacant place of Milind Govind Kshirsagar.

Writ Petition No.9543 of 2025 relates to Change Report No.722/2005, whereby the reporting trustee Shri Vitthal Laxman Atre reported names of the retiring trustees as Madhukar Narhar Phadke, Sudhir Malhar Kulkarni, Vilas Vinayak Dange and the re-appointed trustees as Sudhir Malhar Kulkarni, Vilas Vinayak Dange including the newly appointed trustee namely Shrikant Digambar Kavthekar.

Writ Petition No.9564 of 2025 relates to Change Report No.956/2006, whereby new appointment is made of Sanjay Shivaji Kshirsagar on the place of Purushottam Berde, who had resigned earlier and the change is reported by Shrikant Kavthekar.

Writ Petition No.9979/2025 relates to Change Report No.634/2007, whereby name of Suhas Gangadhar Bhagwat is removed from trusteeship on account of his resignation. Writ Petition No.9545 of 2025 relates to Change Report No.1022/2008, whereby retiring and re-appointment of trustees, are reported. The re-appointed trustees are Sanjay Shivaji Kshirsgar, Sudhir Vinayak Kshirsgar and new appointments are Shrirang Gangadhar Jeste, Sudhir Mali and Vinod Purushottam Namjoshi.

Writ Petition No.9980 of 2025 relates to Change Report No.1281/2011, wherein retirement and appointment of trustees are reported. Retiring trustees are Shrirang Gangadhar Jeste, Vilasvinayak Dange, Shrikant Digambar Kavathekar and new appointments being Nitin Shrinivas Jogalekar and Prakash Maheshwar Pradhan.

3. By the respective impugned orders, all the above change reports are rejected by the Deputy Charity Commissioner, so also, by the appellate authority i.e. the Joint Charity Commissioner. Against the concurrent orders passed by the authorities below the present writ petitions are filed and they are taken up together as in the course of discussion of this Judgment. It would be seen that acceptance or rejection of each change report will have cascading effect on the next change report being accepted or rejected.

CHANGE REPORT NO.557/2003

4. The trust resolved to file the Change Report in the office of the Deputy Charity Commissioner, reporting the change of removal of Milind Kshirsagar (Respondent No.1). It was also resolved that Trustee Shri Vithal Atre will be the reporting trustee of the Change Report. On 10.06.2022, Change Report No.557/2003 was filed.

Milind Kshirsagar filed a written statement and opposed the change report.

On 18.02.2010, the learned Assistant Charity Commissioner rejected the Change Report No.557/2003. Aggrieved by this Judgment of the Assistant Charity Commissioner, the petitioner herein preferred an Appeal No.01/2010 before the learned Joint Charity Commissioner, Pune Region, Pune. The app