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1968 Supreme(Pat) 159
PATNA HIGH COURT
N.L.Untwalia and S.Wasiuddin JJ.
Labh Chandra Reisurana
Versus
State Of Bihar
Civil Writ Jurisdiction Case No. 436 of 1967 ; 437 of 1967 ; 483 of 1967 ;
Decided On : AUGUST 29, 1968
The court held that the instructions issued by the special officer restricting the voting rights of Swetamber Jains residing outside the State of Bihar were ultra vires, illegal, and void, and the electoral roll prepared on the basis of these instructions was invalid and void ab initio. Consequently, the election of the five members of the Board under Section 8(2)(c) of the Act was also void ab initio.
Headnote:
BIHAR HINDU RELIGIOUS TRUST ACT, 1950 - SECTION 8(2) - ELECTION OF MEMBERS OF THE BOARD - RESTRICTIONS ON VOTING RIGHTS - CONSTITUTIONALITY - SCHEME FRAMED BY ILLEGALLY CONSTITUTED BOARD - VALIDITY.
Fact of the Case:
A writ petition was filed challenging the constitution of the Bihar State Board of Swetamber Jain Religious Trust and the scheme framed by it for the management of a group of Swetamber Jain temples. The petitioners claimed that the Board was illegally constituted as the electoral roll for the election of five members of the Board under Section 8(2)(c) of the Bihar Hindu Religious Trust Act, 1950 (Bihar Act 1 of 1951) (the Act) was prepared on the basis of discriminatory and unconstitutional instructions issued by the special officer exercising the powers of the Board.
Finding of the Court:
The court found that the instructions issued by the special officer, which restricted the voting rights of Swetamber Jains residing outside the State of Bihar, were ultra vires, illegal, and void. The court held that the electoral roll prepared on the basis of these instructions was invalid and void ab initio, and consequently, the election of the five members of the Board under Section 8(2)(c) of the Act was also void ab initio.
Issues: 1. Whether the instructions issued by the special officer restricting the voting rights of Swetamber Jains residing outside the State of Bihar were valid? 2. Whether the electoral roll prepared on the basis of these instructions was valid? 3. Whether the election of the five members of the Board under Section 8(2)(c) of the Act was valid? 4. Whether the scheme framed by the illegally constituted Board was valid?
Ratio Decidendi: 1. The court held that the instructions issued by the special officer were ultra vires, illegal, and void as they were issued without any statutory authority and were in violation of the fundamental rights guaranteed under Articles 14 and 26 of the Constitution. 2. The court held that the electoral roll prepared on the basis of these instructions was invalid and void ab initio as it was prepared in violation of the provisions of the Act and the fundamental rights guaranteed under the Constitution. 3. The court held that the election of the five members of the Board under Section 8(2)(c) of the Act was void ab initio as it was held on the basis of an invalid electoral roll. 4. The court held that the scheme framed by the illegally constituted Board was void as it was framed by a Board that was not legally constituted.
Final Decision: The court allowed the writ petitions, quashed the scheme framed by the Board, and directed the respondents not to give effect to the scheme or to withdraw it if they had already given effect to it. The court also directed the State Government to reconstitute the Board within six months from the date of the order.
N.L.Untwalia, J.
1. Since identical questions were involved for determination in these three writ applications, they have been heard together and are being disposed of by this judgment
2. C. W. J. C. Nos. 436 and 483 of 1967 relate to a group of Swetamber Jain temples situated at Pawapuri in the State of Bihar which are known as Shree Jain Swetamber Bhandar Pawapuri Tirth. Some of the petitioners in CW.J.C. No.436 of 1967 claim to be members of Shree Jain Swetamber Bhandar Pawapuri Tirth Vyavasthapak Samiti which is petitioner No. 1. C. W. J. C. 483 of 1967 in which petitioner No. 2 is the Secretary of that Samiti, and the other petitioners in C. W. J. C. 436 of 1967 are persons residing in the various parts of India and professing Swetamber Jain faith. Similarly, some of the petitioners in C. W. J. C. 437 of 1967 are members of a committee known as Shri Jain Swetamber Bhandar Tirth, Rajgir Vyavasthapak Samiti and some claim to profess Swetamber Jain faith.
3. The facts of the two writ applications which relate to the Pawapuri group of temples are identical. For the sake of convenience, I shall refer to the relevant facts from a large number of affidavits filed in C.W.J.C. No. 436 of 1967. There is a public religious trust established at Pawapuri in the State of Bihar in respect of a group of Swetamber Jain temples which were established several centuries back. According to the petitioners case, the management of the trust aforesaid has, according to the long standing practice and usage of the trust, vested in a committee known as Shree Jain Swetamber Bhandar Pawapuri Tirth Vyavasthapak Samiti. The Swetamber Jains constitute a separate religious denomination the general body of which is known as Shree Sangh. The Sangh elects members of the Samiti at its annual congregation generally held on Diwali day at Pawapuri from time immemorial. Properties of the Trust and the right to administer the same vest in the Shree Sangh and the Samiti elected by it. The petitioners case further is that according to the said settled practice and usage, the last election of the members of the Samiti took place on the 16th of November, 1963 at the annual meeting of the Shree Sangh at Pawapuri and members of the Samiti were elected therein. A copy of the resolution passed in the said meeting of the Sangh is annexed to the writ application and marked annexure A.
4. In exercise of the powers conferred by Sec. 5(2) of the Bihar Hindu Religious Trusts Act, 1950 (Bihar Act 1 of 1951) (hereinafter referred to as the Act), a Board called Bihar State Board of Swetamber Jain Religious Trust was constituted and incorporated. Under Section 7 of the Act, all the members of the first Board had to be appointed by the State Government. The second and subsequent Boards were to be constituted in accordance with the provisions of law contained in Section 8(2) of the Act. In exercise of the powers conferred by Section 82 of the Act, the State Government made the Bihar Swetamber Jain Religious Trusts Rules, 1955, There was no interference at any time in the past by the State Government or the Swetamber Jain Religious Board in the management and administration of the properties of the Trust carried on by the Samiti appointed and elected by Shree Sangh on the 16th of November 1963. In spite of the objections raised by the members of the Samiti, Shree Sangh and Swetamber Jains in general, the Bihar State Board of Swetamber Jain Religious Trust adopted a scheme at its meeting held on the 25th of June, 1967 for the management of the Pawapuri group of temples and New Samosaranji temple. A copy of the impugned scheme has been annexed with the writ application and marked annexure D. The scheme has been attacked on various grounds mentioned in paragraph 15 of the writ application in the fourteenth paragraph of which it has been said that it is violative of Articles 14, 19, 25, 26 and 29 of the Constitution. For the reasons stated in my judgment hereinafter, It is not ne
