1[50. Suit by or against or relating to public trusts or trustees or others.- In any case,-
(i) where it is alleged that there is a breach of a public trust, negligence, mis-application or misconduct on the part of a trustee or trustees,
2[(ii) where a direction or decree is required to recover the possession of or to follow a property belonging or alleged to be belonging to a public trust or the proceeds thereof or for an account of such property or proceeds from a trustee, ex-trustee, alienee or any other person but not a person holding adversely to the public trust, trespasser, licensee or tenant,]
(iii) where the direction of the Court is deemed necessary for the administration of any public trust, or
(iv) for any declaration or injunction in favour of or against a public trust or trustee or trustees or beneficiary thereof,
the Charity Commissioner after making such enquiry as he thinks necessary, or two or more persons having an interest in case the suit is under sub-clauses (i) to (iii), or one or more such persons in case the suit is under sub-clause (iv) having obtained the consent in writing of the Charity Commissioner as provided in section 51 may institute a suit whether contentions or not in the Court within the local limits of whose jurisdiction the whole or part of the subject-matter of the trust is situate, to obtain a decree for any of the following reliefs :-
(a) an order for the recovery of the possession of such property or proceeds thereof;
(b) the removal of any trustee or manager;
(c) the appointment of a new trustee or manager;
(d) vesting any property in a trustee;
(e) a direction for taking accounts and making certain enquiries;
(f) an order directing the trustees or others to pay to the trust the loss caused to the same by their breach of trust, negligence, misapplication, misconduct or wilful default;
(g) a declaration as to what proportion of the trust property or of the interest therein shall be allocated to any particular object of the trust;
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(i) a direction authorising the whole or any part of the trust property to be let, sold, mortgaged or exchanged or in any manner alienated on such terms and conditions as the court may deem necessary;
(j) the settlement of a scheme, or variations or alterations in a scheme already settled;
(k) an order for amalgamation of two or more trusts by framing a common scheme for the same;
(l) an order for winding up of any trust and applying the funds for other charitable purposes;
(m) an order for handing over of one trust to the trustees of some other trust and deregistering such trust;
(n) an order exhonerating the trustees from techincal breaches, etc;
(o) an order varying, altering, amending or superseding any instrument of trust;
(p) declaring or denying any right in favour of or against a public trust or trustee or trustees or beneficiary thereof and issuing injunctions in appropriate cases ; or
(q) granting any other relief as the nature of the case may require which would be a condition precedent to or consequential to any of the aforesaid relief or is necessary in the interest of the trust:
Provided that, no suit claiming any of the reliefs specified in this section shall be instituted in respect of any public trust, except in conformity with the provisions thereof:
Provided further that, the Charity Commissioner may instead of instituting a suit make an application to the Court for a variation or alteration in a scheme already settled:
Provided also that, the provisions of this section and other consequential provisions shall apply to all public trusts, whether registered or not or exempted from the provisions of this Act under sub-section (4) of section 1].
4[Explanation.- In this section, "Court" means, in the Greater Mumbai, the City Civil Court and elsewhere, the District Court.].
(i) where it is alleged that there is a breach of a public trust, negligence, mis-application or misconduct on the part of a trustee or trustees,
2[(ii) where a direction or decree is required to recover the possession of or to follow a property belonging or alleged to be belonging to a public trust or the proceeds thereof or for an account of such property or proceeds from a trustee, ex-trustee, alienee or any other person but not a person holding adversely to the public trust, trespasser, licensee or tenant,]
(iii) where the direction of the Court is deemed necessary for the administration of any public trust, or
(iv) for any declaration or injunction in favour of or against a public trust or trustee or trustees or beneficiary thereof,
the Charity Commissioner after making such enquiry as he thinks necessary, or two or more persons having an interest in case the suit is under sub-clauses (i) to (iii), or one or more such persons in case the suit is under sub-clause (iv) having obtained the consent in writing of the Charity Commissioner as provided in section 51 may institute a suit whether contentions or not in the Court within the local limits of whose jurisdiction the whole or part of the subject-matter of the trust is situate, to obtain a decree for any of the following reliefs :-
(a) an order for the recovery of the possession of such property or proceeds thereof;
(b) the removal of any trustee or manager;
(c) the appointment of a new trustee or manager;
(d) vesting any property in a trustee;
(e) a direction for taking accounts and making certain enquiries;
(f) an order directing the trustees or others to pay to the trust the loss caused to the same by their breach of trust, negligence, misapplication, misconduct or wilful default;
(g) a declaration as to what proportion of the trust property or of the interest therein shall be allocated to any particular object of the trust;
3**
(i) a direction authorising the whole or any part of the trust property to be let, sold, mortgaged or exchanged or in any manner alienated on such terms and conditions as the court may deem necessary;
(j) the settlement of a scheme, or variations or alterations in a scheme already settled;
(k) an order for amalgamation of two or more trusts by framing a common scheme for the same;
(l) an order for winding up of any trust and applying the funds for other charitable purposes;
(m) an order for handing over of one trust to the trustees of some other trust and deregistering such trust;
(n) an order exhonerating the trustees from techincal breaches, etc;
(o) an order varying, altering, amending or superseding any instrument of trust;
(p) declaring or denying any right in favour of or against a public trust or trustee or trustees or beneficiary thereof and issuing injunctions in appropriate cases ; or
(q) granting any other relief as the nature of the case may require which would be a condition precedent to or consequential to any of the aforesaid relief or is necessary in the interest of the trust:
Provided that, no suit claiming any of the reliefs specified in this section shall be instituted in respect of any public trust, except in conformity with the provisions thereof:
Provided further that, the Charity Commissioner may instead of instituting a suit make an application to the Court for a variation or alteration in a scheme already settled:
Provided also that, the provisions of this section and other consequential provisions shall apply to all public trusts, whether registered or not or exempted from the provisions of this Act under sub-section (4) of section 1].
4[Explanation.- In this section, "Court" means, in the Greater Mumbai, the City Civil Court and elsewhere, the District Court.].
1. Section 50 was substituted by Mah. 20 of 1971, s. 34.
2. This clause was substituted by Mah. 55 of 2017, s. 13(a).
3. Sub-clause (h) was deleted by Mah. 55 of 2017, s. 13(b).
4. This Explanation was added by Mah. 55 of 2017, s. 13(c).