The Gazetteers Department

PRIOR TO 1950, THE RELIGIOUS AND CHARITABLE TRUSTS IN THE STATE were governed by various enactments, Central as well as Provincial, based on religion. In 1950, a composite legislation called the Bombay Public Trusts Act (XXIX of 1950), was passed, applicable to all public trusts irrespective of their religion. This Act defines " public trust" as " an express or constructive trust for either a public, religious or charitable purpose or both, and includes a temple, a math, a wakf, a dharmada or any religious or charitable endowment and a society formed either for a religious or charitable purpose or for both and registered under the Societies Registration Act (XXI of 1860)".

Public Trusts affected.

The State Government is empowered to apply this Act to any public trust or class of public trusts and on such application the provisions of previous Acts cease to apply to such trust or class of trusts. The Act has been made applicable to the following classes of public trusts with effect from 21st January 1952: -

(1) temples;

(2) maths;

(3) wakfs;

(4) public trusts other than, (1), (2) and (3) above, created or existing solely for the benefit of any community or communities or any section or sections thereof;

(5) societies formed either for religious or charitable purposes or for both and registered under the Societies Registration Act, 1860;

(6) dharmadas, i.e., any amounts which according to the custom or usage of any business or trade or agreement between the parties relating to any transaction, are charged to any party to the transaction or collected under whatever name as being intended to be used for a charitable or religious purpose;

(7) all other trusts, express or constructive, for either a public, religious or charitable purpose or for both.

The Act has not been made applicable to the charitable endowments vested in the Treasurer of Charitable Endowments under the provisions of the Charitable Endowments Act (VI of 1890).

The Charity Commissioner, with headquarters at Bombay, has been appointed to administer the Act. The first Charity Commissioner was appointed on 14th August 1950. An Assistant Charity Commissioner has been appointed for the Kolhapur region, with headquarters at Kolhapur to administer the provisions of the Act. The Kolhapur region comprises the territories included in the districts of Kolhapur (including Chandgad taluka), North Satara, South Satara and Ratnagiri. The Assistant Charity Commissioner is directly responsible to the Charity Commissioner.

Duties of Trustees.

The Act imposes a duty on the trustees of a public trust to which the Act has been applied to make an application for the registration of the trust within three months of the application of the Act or its creation, giving particulars specified in the Act, which include, (a) the approximate value of moveable and immoveable property owned by the trust, (b) the gross average annual income of the trust property, and (c) the amount of the average annual expenditure of the trust. No registration is, however, necessary in the case of dharmadas which are governed by special provisions of the Act in certain respects. Trusts registered under any of the previous Acts are deemed to be registered under this Act. The total number of public trusts registered in the Kolhapur district for the period upto 31st March 1957 was 1,681 having assets amounting to Rs. 2,04,08,543. The annual income and expenditure of these trusts were Rs. 29,57,353 and Rs. 26,23,149 respectively.

A registration fee ranging from Rs. 3 to Rs. 25 is levied depending on the value of the property of the public trust. An annual contribution at the rate of two per cent, of the Public annual income is also recovered which is credited to the Public Trust Administration Fund created under the Act. The contribution does not form part of the general revenue of the State. Public Trusts exclusively for the purpose of advancement and propagation of secular education or medical relief and public trusts having a gross annual income of Rs. 300 or less are exempted from the payment of contribution. Deduction from the gross annual income for computing contribution are allowed in respect of amounts spent on the advancement and propagation of secular education, medical relief, donations, grants received from Government or local authorities, interest or depreciation or sinking fund, taxes to be paid to Government or local authority, etc. The contribution is levied on the net annual profits in the case of public trusts conducting a business or trade.

Every trustee has to keep regular accounts of the trust which have to be audited annually by Chartered Accountants or persons authorised under the Act. A Chartered Accountant can audit accounts of any public trust but the persons authorised under the Act are permitted to audit accounts only of public trusts having a gross annual income of Rs. 1,000 or less. The auditor has to submit a report to the Deputy or Assistant Charity Commissioner of his region on a number of points, such as whether accounts are maintained regularly and according to law and regularity, whether an inventory has been maintained of the moveables of the public trust, whether any property or funds of the trust have been applied for an object or for purpose not authorised by the trust, whether the funds of the trust have been invested or immoveable property alienated contrary to the provisions of the Act, etc.

In order to afford relief to public trusts having small income, a Travelling Auditor has been appointed who is required to move from district to district and conduct an on-the-spot audit of the accounts of the public trusts having an annual income of Rs. 10,000 or less.

If on a consideration of the report of the auditor, the accounts and explanation, if any, furnished by the trust or any other person concerned, the Deputy or Assistant Charity Commissioner is satisfied that the trustee or any other person has been guilty of gross negligence, breach of trust or misapplication or misconduct resulting in a loss to the trust, he has to report to the Charity Commissioner who after due inquiry determines the loss, if any, caused to the trust and surcharges the amount on the person found responsible for it. No sale, mortgage, exchange or gift of any immoveable property and no lease for a period exceeding ten years in the case of agricultural land and three years in the case of non-agricultural land or building belonging to a public trust is valid without the previous sanction of the Charity Commissioner. The Trustee of a public trust is bound to invest the surplus funds of the trust in public securities or first mortgage of immoveable property on certain conditions. For making an investment in any other form, the permission of the Charity Commissioner must be obtained.

If the original object of a public trust fails wholly or partially, if there is surplus income or balance not likely to be utilised, if in the case of a public trust other than a trust for a religious purpose, it is not in the public interest expedient, practicable, desirable, necessary or proper to carry out, wholly or partially, the original intention of the author of the public trust or the object for which the public trust was created, an application can be made to the District Court or City Civil Court, Bombay, as the case may be for application cy pres of the property or income of the public trust or any of its portion.

If there is a breach of trust or a declaration is necessary that a particular property is the property of a public trust, or a direction is required to recover the possession of such property, or a direction is required for the administration of any public trust, two or more persons having an interest in the trust or the Charity Commissioner can file a suit in the District Court or City Civil Court, Bombay, as the case may be, to obtain reliefs mentioned in the Act. If the Charity Commissioner refuses consent, an appeal lies to the Bombay Revenue Tribunal constituted under the Bombay Revenue Tribunal Act (XII of 1939). The Charity Commissioner can also file such a suit on his own motion.

The Charity Commissioner may, with his consent, be appointed a trustee of a public trust, except of a public trust created for a religious purpose, by a Court or by the author of a trust, provided his appointment is made as a sole trustee. In regard to the public trusts created for religious purposes, while the Courts are not competent to appoint the Charity Commissioner to be a trustee of such a trust, if the author of a public trust for a religious purpose expresses his intention, or the person or the authority in whom the property of such public trust, vests, deems it expedient in public interest, the Court may appoint the Charity Commissioner with his consent to be the sole trustee of such public trust. The Charity Commissioner is, however, precluded from accepting the trusteeship of a public trust for religious purposes which involves the exercise by him as trustee of any religious observance or ceremony or the decision of any questions as to the religious merit or character of any individual or institution.

Registration.

Inquiries regarding the registration of a public trust or regarding the loss caused to a public trust or public trusts registered under the previous Acts, in consequence of the act or conduct of a trustee or any other person, have to be conducted with the aid of assessors not less than three and not more than five in number. The assessors have to be selected, as far as possible, from the religious denomination of the public trust to which the inquiry relates. The presence of assessors, can however, be dispensed with in inquiries where there is no contest. A list of assessors has to be prepared and published in the Official Gazette every three years. District-wise lists of assessors have already been prepared and published in the Bombay Government Gazette.

The Charity Commissioner is deemed to be and to have always been the Treasurer of Charitable Endowments for the State of Bombay, appointed under the provisions of the Charitable Endowments Act, 1890.

Contraventions of the Act amount to offences and are punishable with maximum fines ranging from Rs. 500 to Rs. 1,000 depending on the contravention. The Charity Commissioner is the sole authority for launching prosecutions in the case of such contraventions.

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