M.P. Act No. XXX of 1951
30th November, 1951
An act to regulate and to make better provisions of the administration of public, religious and charitable trusts in the State of Madhya Pradesh Whereas it is expedient to regulate and to make better provision of the administration of public, religious and charitable trust in the State of Madhya Pradesh, It is hereby enacted as follows:--
(1)- This Act may be cited as the Madhya Pradesh Public Trusts Act, 1951.
(3) This section shall come into force at once and Section 2 to 38 shall be in force in Mahakoshal region, and, and shall come into force in other regions of the State on such date, as the State Government may, by Notification in the Official Gazette direct.
In this Act unless there is anything repugnant in the subject or context.
(1) The Collector shall be the Registrar of Public Trusts in respect of every public trust the principal office or the principal Place of business of which as declared in the application made under sub-section (3) section 4 is situate in his district.
(2) The Registrar shall maintain a register of public trusts, and such other books and registers and in such form as may be prescribed.
(1) Within three-months from the date on which this section comes into force in any area or from the date on which a public trust in created, whichever is later, the working trustee of every public trust shall apply to the Registrar having jurisdiction for the registration of the public trust.
(2) Such application shall be accompanied by such fees, if any, not exceeding five rupees as may be prescribed.
(3) The application shall be in such from as may be prescribed and shall among other thing contain the following particulars, namely -
Provided that the rules may provide that in the case of any or all public trusts it shall not be necessary to give the particulars of the trust property of such value and kind as may be specified therein.
(4) No Registrar shall proceed with any application for the registration of a public trust in respect of which an application for registration has been filed previously before any other Registrar and the Registrar before whom the application was filed shall decide which Registrar shall have jurisdiction to register the public trust.
(5) An appeal against the order of the Registrar under sub-section (4) made be filed within thirty days of the order before such officer as the State Government may, by notification, appoint and, subject to the decision in such appeal, the order of the Registrar under sub-section (4) shall be final.
(6) Every application made under subsection (1) shall be signed and verified in accordance with the manner laid down in the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (V of 1908), for signing and verifying plaints. It shall be accompanied by a copy of an instrument of trust if such instrument had been executed and in existence and where the trust property includes immovable property about which record is kept, a copy of the entries relating to such property in such record of rights.
(1) On receipt of an application under Section 4 or upon an application made by any person having interest in a public trust or on his own motion, the Registrar shall make an inquiry in the prescribed manner for the purpose of ascertaining.
On completion of the inquiry provided for under section 5, the Registrar shall record his findings with reasons therefor as to the matters mentioned in the said section.
(1) The Registrar shall cause entries to be made in the register in accordance with the findings recorded by him under Section 6 and shall publish on the notice board of his office the entries made in the register.
(2) The entries so made shall, subject to the provisions of this Act and subject to any change recorded under any provision of this Act or a rule made thereunder, be final and conclusive.
(1) Any working trustee or person having interest in a public trust or any property found to be trust property, aggrieved by any finding of the Registrar under Section 6 may, within six months from the date of the publication of the notice under sub-section (1) of Section 7, institute a suit in a civil court to have such finding set aside or modified.
(2) In every such suit, the civil court shall give notice to the State Government through the Registrar, and the State Government, if it so desires, shall be made a party to the suit.
(3) On the final decision of the suit, the Registrar shall, if necessary, correct the entries made in the register in accordance with such decision.
(1) Where any change occurs in any of the entries recorded in the register the working trustee shall, within ninety days from the date of the occurrence of such change or where any change is desired in such entries in the interest of the administration of such public trust, report in the prescribed manner such change or proposed change to the Registrar.
(2) If, on receipt of such report and after making such inquiry as the Registrar may consider necessary, the Registrar is satisfied that a change has occurred or is necessary in any of the entries recorded in the register in regard to a particular public trust, he shall record a finding with the reasons therefor and subject to the provisions contained in sub-section (3), amend the entries in the said register in accordance with such finding.
(3) The provisions of Section 8 shall apply to any finding under this section as they apply to a finding under Section 6.
(1) Where any part of the trust property of a public trust is situate within the limits of more than one district, the Registrar shall forward a copy of the entries recorded in the register in respect of that public trust to all Collectors within whose jurisdiction any part of the trust property is situate.
(2) On receipt of any copy of entries under sub-section (1), the
In the case of the public trust which is created by a will, the executor of such will shall, within one month from the date on which the probate of the will is granted or within six months from the date of the testator's death, make an application for the registration of the trust in the manner provided in Section 4.
If, in any proceeding before a Civil Court or a Revenue Officer, any document purporting to create a public trust is produced on any question before such Court or officer is likely to affect any entry in the register such Court or officer shall give notice to the Registrar of such proceedings and shall, if the Registrar applies in that behalf, make him a party to such proceedings.
All monies belonging to a public trust other than monies required for the day-to-day expenditure of the trust shall be kept in a scheduled Bank or a Post Office Savings Banks or in any bank registered under the Co-operative Societies Act, 1912 (II of 1912), or with the approval of the Registrar with any banker or person acting as a banker who has given such security for the safe custody and repayment on demanded of the monies so deposited as the Registrar may in each case think sufficient:
Provided that the Registrar may, by general or special order, permit the trustee of any public trusts or class of such public trusts to invest the money in any other manner.
(1) Subject to the directions in the instrument of trust or any direction given under this or any other law by any Court--
belonging to a public trust, shall be valid without the previous sanction of the Registrar.
(2) The Registrar shall not refuse his sanction in respect of any transaction specified in sub-section (1) unless such transaction will, in his opinion be prejudicial to the interests of the public trust.
(1) The working trustee or manager of a public trust, shall keep regular accounts of all movable and immovable property.
(2) Such accounts shall be kept in such form as may be approved by the Registrar and shall contain such particulars as the Registrar may fix after hearing the working trustee.
(1) The accounts kept under Section 15 shall be balanced each year on the 31st day of March or such other day as may be fixed by the Registrar.
(2) The accounts shall be audited annually in such manner as may, be prescribed any by a person who is a holder of a certificate granted under Section 144 of the Indian Companies Act, 1913 (VII of 1913), or is a member of an institution of association, the members of which have been declared under that section to be entitled to act as auditors of companies or by such persons as may be authorised in this behalf by the State Government or in the case of a public trust, the gross annual income of which does not exceed one thousand rupees, by a person approved by the Registrar by a general or special order.
(3) Every auditor acting under subsection (2) shall have access to the accounts and to all books, vouchers, other documents and records in the possession of, or under the control of working trustee or the manager.
(4) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-sections (1) and (2) to the contrary, the Registrar may direct a special audit of the accounts of any public trust whenever in his opinion such special audit is necessary.
The provisions of sub-sections (2) and (3) shall, so far as may be applicable, able, apply to such special audit. The Registrar may direct the payment of such fee as may be prescribed for such special audit and the working trustee or the manager shall be liable to pay the same from the trust property.
(1) It shall be the duty of every auditor auditing the accounts of a public trust under Section 16 to prepare a balance sheet and income and expenditure account and to forward a copy of the same to the Registrar within whose jurisdiction a public trust has been registered.
(2) The auditor shall, in his report specify all cases of irregularities, illegal or improper expenditure or failure or omission to recover monies or other property belonging to the public trust or waste of money or other property thereof and state whether such expenditure, failure, omission, loss or waste was caused in consequence of a breach of a trust, or misapplication or any other misconduct on the part of the trustee, or any other person.
The working trustee of every public trust, the gross annual income of which exceeds one thousand rupees shall, in each year, submit to the Registrar before such date and in such form as may be prescribed a budget showing the probable receipt and disbursement of the trust property during the following year.
The budget the balance-sheet and the income and expenditure account and audit report, if any, of a public trust shall be open to inspection in the office of the Registrar by any person having interest in such trust on payment of such fee as may be prescribed.
Subject to such conditions and on payment of such fee as may be prescribed, the Registrar shall, on an application made by any person having interest in public trust, grant to such person a certified copy of all or any of the documents referred to in Section 19.
The working trustee of a public trust shall furnish to the Registrar returns and statements as may be prescribed.