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in

REPORTABLE a

IN THE SUPREME COURT OF INDIA

CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION
CIVIL APPEAL NO. 2401 OF 2003 b

K.S. Soundararajan and Ors. .. Appellants

versus
c
Commissioner of H.R. & C.E.
and Ors. .. Respondents

d
JUDGMENT

C. NAGAPPAN, J.
e

1. This appeal is preferred against the judgment and decree

dated 13.12.2000 passed by the High Court of Judicature at

f
Madras in Letters Patent Appeal No.183 of 1994, wherein the

Division Bench held that the first object of the three charities

mentioned in the Will, is of private Trust and the rest are of

g
public Trust and therefore, the respondent no.1 and 2 therein,

have power under Section 64 of the Tamil Nadu Hindu

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Religious and Charitable Endowment Act, 1959, to frame a a

scheme, in so far as, the public Trust is concerned.

2. Briefly the facts are summarized as follows : One

Sundararaja Naidu had no male issues, except two daughters c

and his brother’s son is Kondasamy Naidu and he executed a

registered Will dated 7.12.1949 bequeathing properties

mentioned in Item nos.1, 2 and 3 absolutely in favour of them d

and directed Kondasamy Naidu to be in possession of Item

no.4 and perform the charities mentioned in the Will from out
e
of the income of the said properties and prohibited the

alienation of the said item of land. Later Kondasamy Naidu

alienated a portion of land in Item no.4 in the Will and claimed

f
to have purchased some other properties from out of the sale

proceeds.

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3. Five persons claiming to belong to the community of the a

testator filed application before the Deputy Commissioner for

Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments under Section 64

of H.R. & C.E. Act for setting a scheme in respect of the b

charities mentioned in the Will of Sundararaja Naidu. The

Deputy Commissioner held that the Trust is a private Trust

c
and no scheme could be framed. On appeal his order was set

aside by the Commissioner, who held that the Trust is a public

Trust and charities required to be performed are religious

d
charities and the beneficiaries are the members of the public

and a scheme could be framed and in fact required to be

framed. Meanwhile Kondasamy Naidu died and his legal e

representatives instituted a statutory suit for setting aside the

order of the Commissioner referred to supra. The trial court

dismissed the suit and judgment was affirmed by a single f

Judge of the High Court and in the Letters Patent Appeal

preferred, the Division Bench modified the order of the

g
Commissioner to the extent that the scheme to be framed shall

be confined to the specific endowments attached to the temple,

namely, performance of Pooja and Neivedyam to Subramania

h

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Swami on the occasion of Panguni Uthiram and by feeding by a

way of Pundhi Bojanam on the occasion of God Kallalagar

passing through Vaigai river on the Chitra Pournami day to

Vandiyur. Challenging the same the plaintiffs have preferred b

the present Civil Appeal.

4. Mr. R. Venkataramani, learned senior counsel appearing

for the appellants contended that the pious acts to be

performed under the Will, have no relationship whatsoever to d

the Deities mentioned and there is no charitable activity of

public character and the pious acts do not constitute public

e
Trust and the High Court misconstrued Section 64(1) of the

Act by misreading the Will and by holding that the term

‘attached’ occurring in the explanation under Section 64(1) has

f
to be understood broadly. Per contra the learned counsel

appearing for the respondents contended that the High Court

has rightly held that the pious acts mentioned in the Will are g

religious charities and the framing of scheme in respect of it, is

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within the ambit of power conferred under Section 64 of the a

Act.

5. Provision is made in the Will for the performance of

following charities: c

“1) During Panguni festival at

Thirupparankundram every year according to
income supplying of food to the people of our
own caste and performing poojas and d
neivadhiyam to Swami without fail.

2) Also every year on Chitra Pournami when

Kallalagar entering into Vaigai River and going e
to Vandiur, supplying of food called Arasa.”

6. The Presiding Deity of the temple at f

Thirupparankundram is Subramaniaswami and the

performance of Neivedyam and Pooja to the said Swami during

g
festival mentioned as first charity is clearly a service to be

rendered to the Deity in the Temple. Supply of food on Chitra

Pournami day every year has to be done when God Kallalagar

h

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is taken in procession through the Vaigai river on way to a

Vandiur, is the second charity mentioned in the Will. It is

necessary to refer at this stage to some of the relevant

provisions of the Act. “Religious institution” has been defined b

in Section 6(18) as meaning a math, temple or specific

endowment. “Specific endowment” in Section 6(19) reads thus:

c
“any property or money endowed for the performance of any

specific service or charity in a math or temple or for the

performance of any other religious charity but does not

d
include an inam of the nature described in Explanation (1) to

Clause (17)”. “Religious charity” is defined in Section 6(16) as

meaning a public charity associated with a Hindu festival or e

observance of a religious character, whether it be connected

with a math or temple or not. “Religious endowment” or

“endowment” has been defined in Section 6(17) to mean all f

property belonging to or given or endowed for the support of

maths or temples, or given or endowed for the performance of

g
any service or charity of a public nature connected therewith

or of any other religious charity, and includes the institution

concerned and also the premises thereof but does not include
h

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gifts or property made as personal gifts to the Archaka, Service a

holder or other employee of a religious institution.

7. The Constitution Bench of this Court in the decision in

Mahant Ram Saroop Dasji Vs. S.P. Sahi and Ors. [1959 c

Supp.(2) SCR 583] has succinctly stated the distinction in

Hindu Law between religious endowments which are public

and those which are private, as under: d

“To put it briefly, the essential distinction is that

in a public trust the beneficial interest is vested e
in an uncertain and fluctuating body of persons,
either the public at large or some considerable
portion of it answering a particular description;
in a private trust the beneficiaries are definite
f
and ascertained individuals or who within a
definite time can be definitely ascertained. The
fact that the uncertain and fluctuating body of
persons is a section of the public following a
particular religious faith or is only a sect of g
persons of a certain religious persuasion would
not make any difference in the matter and
would not make the trust a private trust.”

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8. This Court in the decision in Commissioner, Madras

Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Vs. Narayana

Ayyangar and Ors. [1965 (3) SCR 168], while considering the b

charity to feed Brahmins on the occasion of Rathotsavam

festival of Sri Prasanna Venkatachalapathiswami Temple in

c
Gunaseelam, when feeding is not done in the Temple premises

but at a separate place, held that it is a public charity by

observing thus :
d

“On the facts found, it is clear that on the

occasion of the Rathotsavam festival of Sri
e
Prasanna Venkatachalapathiswami shrine,
pilgrims from many places attend the festival
and the object of the charity is to feed Brahmins
attending the shrine on the occasion of this
festival. It is not disputed that setting up a
Fund for feeding Brahmins is a public charity. f
The primary purpose of the charity is to feed
Brahmin pilgrims attending the Rathotsavam.
This public charity has therefore a real
connection with the Rathotsavam which is a
Hindu festival of a religious character, and
g
therefore, it is a religious charity within the
meaning of Section 6(13) of Madras Act 19 of
1951.”

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The object of the second charity herein is to feed on the a

occasion of God Kallalagar being taken out in procession on

Chitra Pournami day by entering into Vaigai river and going to

Vandiyur, and therefore, it is a religious charity and such a b

service should be regarded as one meant for the Deity.

Specific endowment is a religious institution as per the

c
definition stated supra. For the purpose of Section 64 of the

Act, as per explanation provided, the institution means a

temple or a specific endowment attached to a temple. The

d
expression ‘attached’ in the explanation to Section 64(1) has to

be construed having regard to the history of the legislation and

the scheme and objects of the Act and as rightly held by the e

High Court it is required to be understood broadly in that

sense of providing for the performance of any service or

charity in or connected with temple. f

9. The charities of offering Neivedyam to Swami during g

Punguni Uthiaram festival and the feeding by way of Pundhi

Bojanam on the occasion of God Kallalagar passing through

h

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10

Vaigai river to Vandiyur on Chitra Pournami day are religious a

charities and constitute a service to the Deity in the temple

and in our view, the High Court is right in concluding that

the framing of a scheme in respect of these matters is within b

the ambit of powers vested under Section 64 of the Act.

10. There are no merits in the appeal and the same is

dismissed. No costs. d

………………….J.
(M.Y. Eqbal)
e

.…………………J.
(C. Nagappan)

New Delhi;
November 24, 2015.

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