Case Note & Summary
The matter arose from an application filed by the trustees of a registered public trust before the Charity Commissioner seeking prior sanction for sale of trust property. The trust, known as Haji Ismail Haji Habib Musafirkhana Trust, owned a property comprising shops let to tenants, and sought to sell it to another trust for Rs. 1.10 crore citing the building's poor condition and low returns. The shop tenants, through a proposed forum, objected, contending the trust was a wakf and the Charity Commissioner had no jurisdiction. The Commissioner overruled the objections and granted sanction. Aggrieved, the tenants’ forum filed a writ petition before the Bombay High Court. The petition challenged the sanction on jurisdictional grounds and alleged violation of natural justice. The High Court heard arguments and pronounced an oral judgment. The extracted text, however, does not contain the final determination of the court’s decision or the ratio. Therefore, the outcome and legal reasoning remain unavailable in the provided record.
Issue of Consideration
Whether the Charity Commissioner’s order granting sanction under Section 36(1)(a) of the Maharashtra Public Trusts Act, 1950, for sale of trust property is liable to be set aside on grounds of lack of jurisdiction and violation of principles of natural justice at the instance of a proposed tenants' forum; and whether the writ petition is maintainable when an alternative remedy of appeal is available.
Case Details
2019 LawText (BOM) (12) 41
Writ Petition No. 743 of 2019 with Interim Application No. 01 of 2019
S. C. Dharmadhikari, R. I. Chagla
S. M. Gorwadkar (Senior Counsel) with Sana Y. Baugwala, Ritwik Joshi for Petitioners; B. V. Samant (AGP) for State; Anirban Tripathy for Respondent Nos.3-6; Raman Paranjape for Respondent No.7; Virag Tulzapurkar (Senior Counsel) with Soumya Shrikrishna, Chirag Kamdar et al. for Respondent No.8; Divya Parab for Respondent No.9
Haji Ismail Haji Habib Musafirkhana Shop Tenant Forum (Proposed) represented by Mr. Fazal Mehmood
State of Maharashtra & Ors. (Charity Commissioner, Haji Ismail Haji Habib Musafirkhana Trust, Trustees, Saifee Burhani Upliftment Trust, Maharashtra State Board of Wakfs)
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Nature of Litigation
Writ petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India challenging an order of the Charity Commissioner granting sanction under Section 36(1)(a) of the Maharashtra Public Trusts Act, 1950 for sale of trust property.
Remedy Sought
Quashing of the Charity Commissioner's order dated 26th November 2015.
Filing Reason
The petitioners, a proposed shop tenant forum, contended that the trust was a wakf and not a public trust, therefore the Charity Commissioner had no jurisdiction; and that the sale price was inadequate and the order was passed without proper hearing.
Previous Decisions
Charity Commissioner, Maharashtra State, by order dated 26.11.2015 in Application No.48 of 2012, granted sanction under Section 36(1)(a) to sell the trust property to Saifee Burhani Upliftment Trust for Rs.1,10,00,000/- subject to conditions.
Issues
Whether the Charity Commissioner had jurisdiction to grant sanction under Section 36(1)(a) when the property is claimed to be wakf property
Whether the order is in violation of principles of natural justice as the tenants were not heard
Whether the sale price of Rs.1.10 crore was adequate and the sanction valid
Submissions/Arguments
The trust trustees argued that the property was old and dilapidated, generating insufficient income, and that the sale was necessary; the purchaser was offering a fair price and the sale would benefit the trust.
The shop tenants contended that the trust was actually a wakf, governed by the Wakf Act, and thus the Charity Commissioner had no jurisdiction; the sale price was grossly inadequate and the transaction was contrary to the trust's objects.
The tenant forum challenged the sanction on the ground of lack of jurisdiction and violation of natural justice, as their objections were not duly considered.
Judgment Excerpts
Sanction is hereby accorded under Section 36(1)(a) of the Maharashtra Public Trusts Act, 1950 to the trustees ... to sell the property ... on 'as is where is' basis to Saifee Burhani Upliftment Trust ... for a consideration of Rs.1,10,00,000/-
No sale, exchange or gift of any immovable property ... belonging to a public trust, shall be valid without the previous sanction of the Charity Commissioner.
Procedural History
The trustees of Haji Ismail Haji Habib Musafirkhana Trust filed Application No. 48 of 2012 before the Charity Commissioner, Maharashtra State, seeking sanction under Section 36(1)(a) of the MPT Act for sale of trust property. The Charity Commissioner, after hearing parties and considering objections, passed an order on 26.11.2015 granting sanction with conditions. Thereafter, the petitioners, a proposed shop tenant forum, filed Writ Petition No. 743 of 2019 with Interim Application No. 01 of 2019 before the Bombay High Court challenging the said order. The High Court issued rule and heard arguments. The present judgment was delivered on 11.12.2019.
Acts & Sections
- Maharashtra Public Trusts Act, 1950: 36(1)(a), 36(1)(b), 36(1)(c), 36(1A), 36(2), 36(3), 36(4), 36(5)
- Constitution of India: Article 226
