Estates notified under Section 3 of the Orissa Estates Abolition Act, 1951, cannot claim the benefits of Chapter II-A of the Act, which provides special provisions for public trusts, unless they are also notified under Section 3-A.

JUDGMENT :

B.K. Patra, J. - These four appeals arise out of orders of learned Single Judge of this Court dismissing Miscellaneous Appeals Nos. 74, 75, 76 and 77 of 1965. Those appeals were filed by the trustee of the deity Sri Jagannath Swami situate a Athagada in the district of Ganjam in respect of its properties in villages Ustapada, Ranipada, Amonia and Konkorada. The deity possessed properties which admittedly fell within the definition of a 'trust estate' as that expression is defined in Section 13-A(e) of the Orissa Estates Abolition Act, 1951 (herein after referred to as the Act). The notifications abolishing such estates were issued in the year 1955 by which time Section 3-A as it now stands, was not a part of the Statute. The provision under which the estates were abolished is Section 3 of the Act which applies to all categories of estates. Chapter V of the Act contains provisions for assessment of compensation in respect the estates notified for abolition. While in the case of estates general the provision is for payment of lump sum cash compensation, an exception wag made in Section 28(2) that in respect estates held under trust or other legal obligation and dedicate exclusively to charitable or religious purposes of a public nature without any reservation of pecuniary benefit to any individual instead of paying a lump sum compensation, the compensation was to be assessed as a perpetual annuity equal to such the income of the estate and paid to the intermediary. In accordance with this provision, the annuity was calculated in respect of the disputed estates which admittedly fan in the category estates referred to in Section 8(2), and it is being paid to the Appellant.

2. In 1956, the Act was amended and Section 3-A was introduced. Sub-section (1) thereof flays that without prejudice, to the powers u/s 3, the State Government may be notification declare that the intermediary interests of all inter mediaries or a class or classes of intermediaries in the whole or part of the State have passed to and become vested in the State free from all encumbrances. It would therefore be seen that while Section 3 deals with vesting notification in respect of individual specified estates, Section A refers to a general notification whereby the intermediary interests of a class or classes of intermediaries vest in the State.

3. In 1963, an important amendment beneficial to a particular class of intermediaries, namely, holders of trust estates was made by introducing a new Chapter "Chapter II-A" entitled "Special Provisions for Public Trusts". Section 13-A which is the first section in this Chapter defines certain expressions including "trust estate". A trust estate had been defined in Clause (e) as meaning an estate, the whole of the net income whereof under any trust or other legal obligation has been dedicated exclusively to charitable or religious purposes of a public nature without any reservation of pecuniary benefit to any individual. It is manifest that estates falling under this definition are the same as the "Estates" dealt with u/s 28(2) of the Act. It is the admitted case of the parties that the disputed estates answer the definition of a "trust estate" as that term is defined in Section 13-A (e of the Act. Section 13-B says that a vesting notification shall have effect subject to the provisions f this Chapter Section 13-C deals with constitution of tribunals and Section 13-D provides for claims and references to the Tribunal. Section 13-D may be quoted:

13-D. Claims and references. (1) The trustee in respect of a trust estate shall upon the issue of a notification u/s A, make an application into prescribed form and manner to the Tribunal within three months from the date of such notification claiming that the estate is a trust estate.

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Section 13-G deals with disposal of claims and references and provides that the Tribunal constituted u/s 13-C is to decide whether an estate in respect of which an application is made