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TMI Blog1968 (7) TMI 6X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Bagaria, Gangadhar Bagaria, Indra Chand Bagaria and Onkarmull Jhoonjhoonwalla upon the trusts and for the purposes hereinafter mentioned, viz : (a) The name of the trust hereby created shall be styled Sreemati Ganeshi Debi Sreemati Rami Debi Charitable Trust'.... (c) The trustees shall out of the income to be derived from the trust property duly carry on the worship of the said deities Sri Rami Sita and Lakshman installed at Sujangarh confirmed (sic) by the parties hereto of the Second Part and shall spend Rs. 250 (rupees two hundred and fifty) monthly and every month for the daily and periodical pujas and shebas of the said deities Shri Ranm Sita and Lakshman and sadabrata and shall spend Rs. 25 (rupees twenty-five) monthly and every month for upkeep of the Dharamsala called Seth Sujanmull Protapmull Bagaria Dharamsala at Taura and said Piyau and Kund at Sujangarh Bazar and shall spend Rs. 125 (rupees one hundred and twenty-five) monthly and every month for the Sanskrit Patasala known as Seth Sujanmull Protapmull Bagaria Sanskrit Patasala at Sujangarh. (d) The trusees shall in the next place pay an annuity of Rs. 50 to Baikishan Devi and a sum of Rs. 25 to Baimanbhari every ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... his, according to the Income-tax Officer, was not a public charitable purpose recognised by law. According to him, in order to be a public religious and charitable trust, the larger section of at least of the same religion to which the settlors belong must have a right to worship and they must have a right to take food and refreshment after the daily puja. With regard to the provisions regarding the two females, it was stated before him that nothing was paid. According to the Income-tax Officer, it was not for public charitable purposes. There was an appeal to the Appellate Assistant Commissioner. The Appellate Assistant Commissioner has considered the relevant provisions. He finds that the temple was situated in the " bazar " area and free distribution of food is daily made to the poor and the mendicants. He has considered the purposes of the trust. He has said that distribution of alms to the poor and Brahmins is an usual practice found in all private temples and, therefore, this cannot be considered to be any purpose which would come within the meaning of public charitable purpose. He considered that piyau and kund would be in the nature of public charity but they could no ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... but were installed in a bazar. There is no restriction that pujas will be offered by members of the family only. A sum of Rs. 250 was directed to be spent for the " pujas ". A question arises, after the pujas to whom would the prasad (offering of food) go ? There is no specific provision in it that the prasad would go to the general public. There is also no specific provision that the members of the settlor's family would get the prasad (food) after it is offered to the deities. But there is a provision for sadabrata and there has been no separate fund for it. Sadabrata means offering of food to the poor ; the mendicants and any person who may come to the temple for getting the prasad. Members of the family are not debarred from taking food but anybody and everybody may come and take it. As a matter of fact, it has been found that it is the poor people of the locality and the mendicants and, some Brahmins who take it. But, apart from the finding of fact, the term is that the entirety of the food which after offering becomes prasad is to be distributed amongst persons who are ready to accept it. We cannot say that this food was restricted to be used for any private purpose by the s ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... patasala is open to the public. There is no restriction. If Brahmin boys read there, still it would be for the public care. The absence of rules and registers of the school may be a matter of application of the fund but is not a matter relevant for the construction of the deed. Hence, no part of clause (c) can be said to enure to the benefit of the settlors or the members of the settlors' family. The intention is clear that members of the public would be benefited by it. So far as piyau and kund are concerned, all the authorities below have agreed that they were for public purpose. The next clause (d) relating to the sums of money paid to certain ladies have been argued to be for the benefit of the public. We find no substance in that argument. It is further urged, as it was never paid, this clause need not be considered. I do not think we can overlook the said clause, because we have to construe the deed. But, we cannot say that clause (d) would serve any public purpose. Clause (e) directs that the settlors would spend Rs. 50 each for charitable and religious purposes. The money would be given for that purpose. If they do not spend in that manner in a particular year, that m ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... (3)(i) of the Income-tax Act together with the definition of the words " charitable purposes " in that Act. Section 4(3)(i) reads as follows : " Subject to the provisions of clause (c) of sub-section (1) of section 16, any income derived from property held under trust or other legal obligation wholly for religious or charitable purposes, in so far as such income is applied or accumulated for application to such religious or charitable purposes as relate to anything done within the taxable territories, and in the case of properties so held in part only for such purposes, the income applied or finally set apart for application thereto : . . ." We are not here called upon to decide whether the amounts referred to have been applied or accumulated in accordance with the provisions of section 4(3)(i) ; so we keep that matter open. Section 4(3)(i) says that relief may be obtained when the entire income is held in trust for religious and charitable purpose or when a portion of the income created by a deed is held for religious and charitable purposes. We may, therefore, hold, in view of the provisions of section 4(3)(i), that the clauses other than clause (d) of the trust deed in ques ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... n that it was charitable purpose because the property was held for " the advancement of an object of general public utility ". That question does not arise in the circumstances of the present case. If we are to consider that the primary purpose has to be considered, even then we find that the total income of the property would come to about Rs. 2,500 per month. Out of that, Rs. 500 is to be spent for specific religious and charitable purposes, Rs. 75 would go to two ladies and the rest would be accumulated or spent for " hospitals and religious and educational institutions ". Therefore, the primary object here again is for charitable purposes and the test is satisfied. Another decision of the Supreme Court in State of Bihar v. Smt. Charusila Dasi has been referred to. The question there was whether the trust was a public endowment within he meaning of the Bihar Hindu Religious Trusts Act (Act I of 1951), and naturally, the Supreme Court there considered in whom the management of the trust fund vested and they found that it was in the public and it held that it was a public religious charitable trust. There is some amount of similarity in the trust deed now in question and the dee ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e to the conclusion that it was not a public religious charitable trust. The facts here disclose completely different things. The last judgment which has been referred to by the department is Bankim Chandra Datta v. Commissioner of Income-tax. There again the worship was of family deities and not of deities which were open to public worship. " Family deities " mean those deities which have been worshipped by the members of a particular family from generation to generation and wherein the public by custom has acquired no right to offer " pujas ". There are family deities which are worshipped by the members of the family from generation to generation but still the public have acquired by custom a right to offer pujas, Those deities would not be considered to be family deities for the aforesaid purpose. There may be again certain deities which are not the deities of the family but installed by a particular gentleman and the public offer pujas without any objection and thus acquire a customary right of worshipping the deities. Here what was intended was that these deities installed in bazar area would be open to worship by any and every member of the public and the further provision of ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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