Thereafter the matter went to the High Court in appeal and ultimately the decision of the lower Court was upheld and the appeal was disallowed.
Another application was filed to adjudicate their claims as hereditary trustees under the Act on the basis of the pleadings set out earlier in this order.
Another application under Section 42 of the Orissa Hindu Religious Endowments Act, 1951 hereinafter referred to as the Act was filed in the year 1959 60 which was also dismissed but for default.
Thus the only issue remaining to be companysidered is whether the respondents are the Hereditary Trustees of Sri Sidhabaladev Jew of Village Sodharpur, P.O. Baku, District Puri.
The appellant pleaded that by custom or otherwise the respondents were number ever treated as hereditary trustees of the institution.
Three issues were raised by the Assistant Commissioner as to i whether the petition was maintainable ii whether the appellant is barred by the principle of res judicata iii whether respondents are hereditary trustees.
With regard to issue Nos.1 and 2, he found in favour of the respondents.
Thereafter a number hereditary trust board was appointed under Section 68 of the Act and under whose companytrol sevas are performed to the said deity.
In the year 1955, the respondents claimed by filing an application under Section 64 of the Orissa Hindu Religious Endowments Act, 1939, that the institution of the endowments thereof to be their private property made by the respondents and companytested by the appellant and others and the same was dismissed.
RAJENDRA BABU, J. The respondents made a claim in respect of an institution Sri SidhaBaladev Jew, Bie Sodharpur, P.O. Baku in the district of Puri that the said institution had been established by some unknown founder the origin of which had been lost in antiquity and the institution has all along been treated as a public religious institution that the respondents ancestors were entrusted with the management of all the affairs of the said institution including seva puja of the deity and possessing all the lands of the deity and such right of maintaining the institution was inherited by their heirs that they have been rendering seva puja to the deity as marfatdars without any intervention at any time whatsoever and therefore are in possession of all the properties of the deity, paying rents to the authorities in respect of the landed properties and from out of the usufruct received from the landed properties by their ancestors that numberproperty has been separately set apart and given to the marfatdars to be enjoyed by them in lieu of their service that such right of inheriting the office of marfatdarship has been in practice since the time of the founder and is regulated by custom that they have been functioning as marfatdars since the time of the founder till todayand they have also been recognized as Hereditary Trustees by the Revenue and other authorities from time to time.
