Therefore, the Court held that the Civil Judge has no jurisdiction to entertain a suit filed
under Section 92 of CPC or under the provisions of REA.
What is Section 92 of CPC?
About:
Section 92 of CPC provides for procedure for filing a civil suit by a Charitable trust
against a third party.
This Section protects the public’s interests in public trusts and charities.
Constituents of Section 92 (1):
Conditions When the Suit can be Filed:
In case of alleged breach of any express or constructive trust created for public
purposes of a charitable or religious nature, or
Where the direction of the Court is deemed necessary for the administration of trust.
The Persons by Whom Suit May be Instituted:
The Advocate General
Or two or more persons having an interest in the trust and having obtained the leave
of the Court
The Suit can be Filed in:
The principal Civil Court of original jurisdiction or
Any other Court empowered in this behalf by the State Government within the local
limits of whose jurisdiction the whole or any part of the subject-matter of the trust is
situate to obtain a decree
Purposes for which Suit can be Filed:
Removing any trustee
Appointing a new trustee
Vesting any property in a trustee
directing a trustee who has been removed or a person who has ceased to be a
trustee, to deliver possession of any trust property in his possession to the person
entitled to the possession of such property
directing accounts and inquiries
declaring what proportion of the trust property or of the interest therein shall be
allocated to any particular object of the trust
authorizing the whole or any part of the trust property to be let, sold, mortgaged or
exchanged
settling a scheme
granting such further or other relief as the nature of the case may require.
Constituents of Section 92 (2):
Section 92 (2) of CPC provides that any suit of the form referred to under Section 92 (1)
of CPC can only be instituted in the manner prescribed therein.
Section 92 (1) does not apply in following cases:
In cases provided under The Religious Endowments Act, 1863, or
By any corresponding law in force in the territories which immediately before 1st
November 1956 were comprised in Part B states.
Constituents of Section 92 (3):
Section 92 (3) of CPC provides for the alteration of original purposes of a trust
(constructive or express) created for public purposes.
It provides that the Court can allow the property or income of such trust or any
portion thereof to be applied cypress
The above can happen in following circumstances:
where the original purposes of the trust, in whole or in part,
have been, as far as may be, fulfilled;
cannot be carried out at all, or cannot be carried out according to the directions
given in the instrument creating the trust or, where there is no such instrument,
according to the spirit of the trust
where the original purposes of the trust provide a use for a part only of the
property available by virtue of the trust;
where the property available by virtue of the trust and other property applicable
for similar purposes can be more effectively used in conjunction with, and to that
end can suitably be made applicable to any other purpose, regard being had to
the spirit of the trust and its applicability to common purposes
where the original purposes, in whole or in part, were laid down by reference to an
area which then was, but has since ceased to be, a unit for such purposes
where the original purposes, in whole or in part, have, since they were laid down:
been adequately provided for by other means
ceased, as being useless or harmful to the community
ceased to be, in law, charitable,
ceased in any other way to provide a suitable and effective method of using the
property available by virtue of the trust, regard being had to the spirit of the trust
What are the Landmark Judgments on Section 92
of CPC?
Bishwanath v. Sri Tahkur Radha Ballabhji (1967)
The Court held that in order to invoke Section 92 of CPC three requirements must be
met:
Firstly, the trust was established for charitable or public purposes
Secondly, there was a breach of trust
Lastly, a court order was required to be followed in the administration of such a
trust.
Janki Prasad v. Kuber Singh (1963)
The mere absence of a written document or mere absence of the entries is not a
conclusive proof of the non-existence of a trust
A valid trust may be created not only by means of a written document but also orally
but what is required in the case of oral trust is that the property must have been
treated to be an endowed property and it must have been used towards charitable
and religious purposes for which the trust was created.
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