# U. P. SUNNI CENTRAL WAKF l'IOARI> v. Md. ALIM &: ORS

- **Citation:** [1971] Supp. 1 S.C.R. 810
- **Court:** Supreme Court of India
- **Decided:** 1971-05-07
- **Case number:** CIVIL APPELLATE JUR.ISDICTION ~ Civil Appeal No. 1021 of 1966
- **Bench:** K. S. Hegde, A. N. GROVEi\
- **Source:** https://unisonlegal.in/judgment/supreme-court-of-india/u-p-sunni-central-wakf-l-ioari-v-md-alim-ors-5436
- **Pages:** 6

## Headnote

Uttar Pradesh Muslim Waqfs Act, 1960-Religious Enduwm.m· Ai:t;.
1861 '1ct 20 of 1863-District Judge has no power to fill in vacancy on.th!!"
comnutttte constituted ultder the latter A.ct.
Tho Waqf of tho Durgah at Fatehpuri is one of tho Waqfa to which.
the provision! of tho Uttar Pradesh Muslim Waqfs Act, 1960 applied. When·
vacancies arose on the committee of Management constituted under
tbe
Religious Endowment Act, 1861 (Act 20 of 1863) and these ·wore not filled
by election in terms of s. 10 of this Act, tho appellant Board, constituted
under the 1960 Act, filled in tho vacancies acting under tho provisions of
the Act. Thereupon respondent no. 1 filed an application in tho court of
tho District Juda• under Act 20 of 1863 to appoint persons to fill in tht
vacancies. Tho District Judge hold that ho had the power to reconstitut•
th• managing committee under s. 10 of Act 20 of 1863 and directed that
the vacancies be filled in according to tho rules. Tho Hlah Court in revi•
sion came to tho conclusion that there was no provision in tho 1960 Act cor
rospondina to 1. 13 of Act 20 of 1863 which cast an additional respon·
sibility on tho committee·to keep in its custody accounts and consequently
held tbat tho Committee conititutod under Act 20 of 1863 could 1till con·
tinuo to discharge oomo of the functions assigned to it, and the District
Judge was thus competent to entertain an .application u11dor 1. 10 thoreol.
HELD: Tho District Judge had no jurisdiction or power to fill hr
vacancies on the Committee constituted under the provilions of Act 20>
of 1863.
Sections 49 and SO of tho 1960 Act leave no room for doubt that ac·
counts, which would include books of account, and all relevant records,
deeds and documents have. to be in Mutawallf• custody and he is bound
to produce them for inspection by tho Board whenever oo desired and
Mutawalli accordina to tho definition includes a committee of manaaement.
Tho Act is oolf contained and makes provision for complete ouperintondoru:e,
administration and control of the Waqfs over which tho boards established under s. 10 of tho 1960 Act, have jurisdiction.
Therefore, there cannot be an independent oxistelice of a committeeconstitutod under Act 20 of 1863 only for tho purpose of havini custodyof books of account particularly when the 1960 Act fully contemplatoil
and provides for the maintcnadt:e, custody etc. of accounts and account
books by tho mutawalli. Thero is a clear inconsistency between its 11ro·
visions and those of Act 20 of 1860 relatina to committees, their functioning and control. [814F·Hl
CIVIL APPELLATE JUR.ISDICTION
~ Civil Appeal No. 1021 of
1966.
Appeal by special leave from the judgment and decree da~
September 8; 1965 of the Allahabad High Court in Civil. Revisiom
No. 76 of 1964.
u. p, SUNNI WAJ:P BOARD v. MOHD. ALlll (Grover,/.)
8 u
C. B. Aggarwala, K. L. Hathi, Quayamuddin Shah and P. C.
&
Kapoor, for the appellant.
M. C. Chag/a and S. S. Shukla, for respondent No. l(ii).
S. K. Bagga and s. Bagga, for respondent Nos. 2(i) to (iii).

## Text

810
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U. P. SUNNI CENTRAL WAKF l'IOARI>
v.
Md. ALIM &: ORS.
May 7, 1971
[K. S. HEGDE AND A. N. GROVEi\, 11.J
Uttar Pradesh Muslim Waqfs Act, 1960-Religious Enduwm.m· Ai:t;.
1861 '1ct 20 of 1863-District Judge has no power to fill in vacancy on.th!!"
comnutttte constituted ultder the latter A.ct.
Tho Waqf of tho Durgah at Fatehpuri is one of tho Waqfa to which.
the provision! of tho Uttar Pradesh Muslim Waqfs Act, 1960 applied. When·
vacancies arose on the committee of Management constituted under
tbe
Religious Endowment Act, 1861 (Act 20 of 1863) and these ·wore not filled
by election in terms of s. 10 of this Act, tho appellant Board, constituted
under the 1960 Act, filled in tho vacancies acting under tho provisions of
the Act. Thereupon respondent no. 1 filed an application in tho court of
tho District Juda• under Act 20 of 1863 to appoint persons to fill in tht
vacancies. Tho District Judge hold that ho had the power to reconstitut•
th• managing committee under s. 10 of Act 20 of 1863 and directed that
the vacancies be filled in according to tho rules. Tho Hlah Court in revi•
sion came to tho conclusion that there was no provision in tho 1960 Act cor
rospondina to 1. 13 of Act 20 of 1863 which cast an additional respon·
sibility on tho committee·to keep in its custody accounts and consequently
held tbat tho Committee conititutod under Act 20 of 1863 could 1till con·
tinuo to discharge oomo of the functions assigned to it, and the District
Judge was thus competent to entertain an .application u11dor 1. 10 thoreol.
HELD: Tho District Judge had no jurisdiction or power to fill hr
vacancies on the Committee constituted under the provilions of Act 20>
of 1863.
Sections 49 and SO of tho 1960 Act leave no room for doubt that ac·
counts, which would include books of account, and all relevant records,
deeds and documents have. to be in Mutawallf• custody and he is bound
to produce them for inspection by tho Board whenever oo desired and
Mutawalli accordina to tho definition includes a committee of manaaement.
Tho Act is oolf contained and makes provision for complete ouperintondoru:e,
administration and control of the Waqfs over which tho boards established under s. 10 of tho 1960 Act, have jurisdiction.
Therefore, there cannot be an independent oxistelice of a committeeconstitutod under Act 20 of 1863 only for tho purpose of havini custodyof books of account particularly when the 1960 Act fully contemplatoil
and provides for the maintcnadt:e, custody etc. of accounts and account
books by tho mutawalli. Thero is a clear inconsistency between its 11ro·
visions and those of Act 20 of 1860 relatina to committees, their functioning and control. [814F·Hl
CIVIL APPELLATE JUR.ISDICTION
~ Civil Appeal No. 1021 of
1966.
Appeal by special leave from the judgment and decree da~
September 8; 1965 of the Allahabad High Court in Civil. Revisiom
No. 76 of 1964.
u. p, SUNNI WAJ:P BOARD v. MOHD. ALlll (Grover,/.)
8 u
C. B. Aggarwala, K. L. Hathi, Quayamuddin Shah and P. C.
&
Kapoor, for the appellant.
M. C. Chag/a and S. S. Shukla, for respondent No. l(ii).
S. K. Bagga and s. Bagga, for respondent Nos. 2(i) to (iii).
The Judgment of the Court was delivered by
Grover,. J~This is an appeal by special leave from a judg·
ment of the Allahabad High Court made in exercise of the revi·
sional jurisdiction.
The appellant is a statutory board established under the provisions of s. 10 of the Uttar Pradesh Muslim Waqfs Act, 1960.
hereinafter called the 'Act'. The Act applies to all waqfs which
at the time of its coming into force were under the ~uperintendence
of the Sunni Central Board and the Shia Central Board consti·
luted under the U.P. Muslims Waqfs Act 1936.
The present proceedings relate to the famous Durgah of
Hazrat Sheikh Saleem Cbishti at Fatehpuri Sikri in the district
of Agra said to have been established by Emperor Akbar. The
Durgah was administered originally by the Moghuls and thereafter by the Board of Revenue established by the British Govern·
ment under the Bengal Regulation No. 19 of 1810. Subsequently
the Religious Endowment Act 1861 (Act 20 of 1863) was passed
which provided for the management of mosques, temples and
other religious establishments. Section 7 of Act 20 of 1863 pro·
vided for the appointment and constitution of the committees
which were to be appointed by the State . Government for the
management of religious establishments mentioned in s. 3 of that
Act Section 10 provided for election when a vacancy occurred in
the committee. By G.O. dated July 7, 1925 and a subsequent
notification dated February 27, 1927 rules for the election of the.
managing committee were framed and a committee was formed.
The Waqf of the Durgah was registered as one of the waqfs
under the superintendence of the Board as provided by s. 5 of
the U. P. Muslim Waqfs Act 1936. It is common ground that the
waqf is registered and it is one of the waqfs to which the provi·
sions of the Act would be applicable. The term of four members
of the committee constituted under the provisions of Act 20 of
1863 expired in 1962 and as the vacancies were not filled in by
election the President of the appellant board filled in the vacanci~
acting under the provisions of the Act Respondent No. 1 filcl
an application in the court of the District Judge at Agra purporting
to be an application under Act 20 of 1863 stating inter alia that
the President of the appellant board had constituted a committee
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SUPREME COURT REPORTS
(1971] SUPP. s.c.R.
of five persons under the provisions of the Act by filling in the
four vacancies. It was further averred that the provisions of the
Act, particularly s. 48, did not obviate the necessity of the appointment of the committee by the District Judge under s. 10 of
Act 20 of 1863. It was, therefore, prayed that the District
Judge may appoint persons to fill in the vacancies. The appellant
board contested that application principally on the ground that
after the enactment of the Act the .provisions of s. 10 of Act 20
of 1863 were no longer applicable.
The appellant board also
maintained that the appointment of the committee by the court
would be inconsistent with the appointment of a managing committee by the board under the provisions of the Act.
The District Judge by his judgement dated November 23,
1963 held that he had the power to reconstitute the managing
committee under s. 10 of Act 20 of 1863. He directed that the
vacancies shall be filled up according to the prescribed rules.
The appellant moved the High Court under s. 115 of the Code of
Civil Procedure for revising the order of the District Judge. The
High Court referred to the relevant provisions of the Act as well
as Act 20 of 1863. It was of the view that for the purpose of Act
20 of 1863 mosques, temples and other religious establishments
could be divided in two main groups. One was that to which the
provisions of the Bengal Regulation No. 19 of 1810 or Madras
Regulation No. 7 of 1817 were applicable. The other group was
the one to which the provisions of these Regulations did not apply.
The first group could be sub-divided into two depending upon
the mode of nomination or appointment of the trustee, manager
or superintendent. Section 3 of Act 20 of 1863 applied to religious establishments falling in the sub-group in whicb the nomination of a trustee, manager or superintendent thereof was vested
in, or was exercised by or was subject to the confirmation of the
government or any public officer. In case of establishments
covered by s. 3 it was necessary for the State Government to proceed under s. 7 and to appoint one or more committees. On the
appointment of the committee the Board of Revenue and the
local agents ceased to exercise the functions assigned to them
under the Regulation and they were to transfer to such committee
all landed or other property belonging to the establishment. After
referring to the relevant provisions of the Act the learned judge
held that the general power of superintendence conferred on the
committee constituted under s. 7 of Act 20 of 1863 became vested
in the appellant board constituted under the Act. The continuance
of the committee for the general supervision of waqfs was, therefore, inconsistent with the provisions of s. 19 of !be Act and in
such circumstances the corresponding provisions M Act 20 of
1863 stood repealed with the result that the committee appointed
under s. 7 of that enactment could not
discha~e the general
u. P. SUNNJ WAU BOARD Y. MOHD. ALl)l (Grover, J.)
power of supervision and superintendence of waqfs to which the
Act applied. However, in the opinion of the learned judge there
was no provision in the Act corresponding to s. 13 of Act 20 of
1863. That section casts an additional responsibility on the com·
mittee in that it has to keep in its custody accounts regularly submitted by the trustee, manager or superintendent of the mosque
or religious establishment. Clauses (g) and (i) of s. 19(2) and
s. 27 of the Act did not show any inconsistency with the provisions of s. 13 of /'.ct 20 of 1863. It was consequently held that
the committee constituted under s. 7 of Act 20 of 1863 could still
continue to discharge some of the functions assigned to it and the
District Judge was thus competent to entertain an application
under s. 10 thereof and fill the vacancy among the members of
the committee.
We are unable to share the view of the High Court. On his
own reasoning the learned judge could not have come to the con·
clusion at which he arrived, namely, that although the power of
general superintendence of the waqf in question vested in the
appellant board and that the committee constituted under s. 7 of
Act 20 of 1863 could not exercise those powers which were exer·
cisable by the board a committee under the old Act could still
function for the purpose of s. 13 of that Act inasmuch as such a
committee would still have the custody of the accounts of the
waqf.
The Act has been enacted to provide for better governance,
administration and supervision of certain classes of waqf in the
State of U.P. Section 3(5) defines the word "mutawalli" to mean:
"a manager of a waqf and includes an amin, a sajjadana·
shin, a khadim, naib-mutawalli and a committee of mana·
gement, and also includes any person who is for the time
being in charge of, or administering, waqfs."
SectioJl 10 provides for the establishment of Central Boards.
Section 19 contains the ~unctions of the Board. Sub-s. (!) says
that the Board shall do all things reasonable or necessary to ensure that the waqfs under its superintendence ar~ properly main·
. tained, controlled and administered and the income
thereof is
duly appropriated to the purpose for which they were founded or
for which they exist. The following clauses of sub-s. (2) may be
noticed:-
"(g) to inspect or .cause inspection of waqf proper·
ties accounts or records or deeds and documents relating thereto ;
(h) to investigate into the nature and extent of
waqf properties and call, from time to tim!l,
accounts and other returns and information
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from the mutawallis and give directiom for the
proper administration of waqfs ;
(i) to arrange for the auditing of accounts submitted or required to be submitted by the mutawallis:
(k) to administer the Waqf Fund;
(I) to keep regular accounts of the receipts and
disbursement and submit the same to the State
Government in the manner prescribed ;
Section 48 relates to appointment of mutawallis and s. 49 to their
duties. The mutawalli is bound to carry out all directions issued
by the board and to furnish such returns and supply such infor·
mation as may be required by the board or the sub-<:<>mmittee
from time to time. The mutawalli has also to allow inspection
of waqf property, accounts or records or deeds and documents
relating thereto. Under s. 50 he has to prepare every year a 1'ud·
get for the next financial year and submit to the board before the
first day of May in every year a full and true statement of accounts.
Section 85 (I) provides that nothing in any other enactment which
is inconsistent with the provisions of the Act shall apply to any
waqf to which the Act applied.
As has been stall'..d before, it is not disputed that the waqf
of the Durgah is governed by the provisions of the Act. The en·
tire scheme of the Act shows that the control and supervision over
the waqf is that of the board constituted under s. JO. It is the
board that has full powers with regard to inspection of accounts,
their auditing, administration of the waqf funds
and all such
matters. Sections 49 and SO leave no room for doubt that ac·
counts which would include books of account and all relevant
records, deeds and documents have to be in MutawalJi's custody
and he is bound to produce them for inspection of. the board when·
ever so desired.
"MutawalJi", according to the definition, in·
cludes a committee of management. The Act appears to be self·
contained and makes provisions for complete superintendence,
administration and control of the waqfs over which the boards
established under s. 10 have jurisdiction. It is barely possible
to envisage the independent existence of a committee constituted
under Act 20 of 1863 only for the purpose of having custody of
the books of account particularly when the Act fuJJy
contem·
plates and provides for the maintenance, custody etc. of accounts
and account books by the mutawalli. It is common ground that
the Act was passed with the approval of · the President of India.
There is a clear inoo~ncy between its provisions and those of
Act 20 of 1863 relating to committees, their functioning and
.control.
u. P. SUNNI WA"U BOARD'· MOHD. ALIM (Grover, J.)
We accordingly hold that the District Judge had no jurisdic-
;tion or power to fill in vacancies on the committee constituted
under the provisions of Act 20 of 1863. The appeal is therefore
.allowed and the orders of the High Court and the District Judge
.are hereby set aside.
The application under the provisions of
Act 20 of 1863 shall stand dismissed. The parties will bear their
-'lwn costs in this Court.
X.B.N.
Appeal allowed.
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