LexPRITAM DASS MAHANT versus SHIROMANI GURUDWARA PRABANDHAK COMMITTEE
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F G ' .. 564 II , PRITAM DASS MAHANT v .. • SHI~OMANI GURUDWARA. PRABANDHAK COMMlTTEE ianua;y 16, 1984 - ' \ . [D. A, ,DESAI, ·R. B. MISRA AND RANGANATH MISRA; JJ.] , ' ' . _)~ 'Sikh Gurud~ara Act, 1925, as a1J1e11ded by the A111end111e11t Act I of 1959- ·SeCtion 16(2)-WIJ~tfler the institution Dera Bhai Bhagtu wGs ·a Sikh Gu'rudwara?. Whethef mere recit~tiotz of Guru Granth Sahib withotit anyihing nwre ?-Distin_ctive ieatures of Sikhism ·and Sikh te111ples-Court's ciuty to racord poSitive findings, in tet111§ OJ SectiOn 16-Appreciution of the evidence of a witness.- -Ti1e fact that he be!Ongs to~ particll/ar polili~al Party o~· the other does 1101,change .the veracity.a/ his.evidence. """'( Sixfy five persons claimin~ to be meffibers ~f the 'Sikh community· moved ·a:n application before the State Gover~ment under Section 7(1) of the Si,kh 'Gurudwara Act, 1925 to hayea.ieligious institution in yillJ.ge Ramga:rh (also known <is Bbagtuana of. Faridkot tehsil, 9.eclared to. be a Sikh ·Gurud\vara:. -The State Goverrtment -nOti.fied the said applicatiori in the Punjab Governillent Gazette in terinS of S~tion·. 7(3) of thi.! Act on 18th October, 1963~ Upon this the appellant made ap application under Sectioi1s 8 atid 10 of ihe Act clain1ing that the institution was µot·a Sikh Guru- Y- 'dwara but an Udasi ii1stitution· known as Dera Bhai Bhagtu. The applic'ation W?-s :-4. _r:efet~red tO the Sikh Gtirudwara·tribunal for.adjudication. The petition Was ~esistcd by the r~sPOndcnt Shiron1ani Gurdwara Prabandhak coOOnittce on thi-cc groUnds: ~· (i) that,the <ip.pelbnt ~as not ~ompetent to move': ~hi:: petition urider section_ 7 or' t~ --I'--.. • ' Act as he was not a hereditary offi.Ce-holder, (ii) that the provisions of the Act arc noi · ·. · ultravjres the Constitution; ·and (iii) that thi"institution in disput~ was a·· Sikh Guru- ,,,.. dwara. The Tribunal held against the respondCnt arid in favour of the -~ppellant on Contention(!). Since the second Contention was·not preSsed ·and the thfrd questio)l ' ·_was the 0 only issue, the Tribunal held-that the institution was a Sikh Gurudwara." · ln·app~al, ths Pu.1jab and Ha:ryana High Court confirnied the Tribunal's findings. :-t .Hence the appeal by Special Leave of the Court. . · . Allowing_ the appeal, the Court HELD: 1.1. Thi religious institution, Dera Bhai Bhagtu is not Sikh Guru- 'dwara. on· th~ materials on record: the findi~g~ recOrd~d byt he Tribunal as well as the High COurt are wholly unsupportable to satisfy the tests indicated in Jaw for .deternlining.'thc character Of the institution ... l5_81D] ~ 1.2. -'The fiindings.of the High· Court clearly shOw that the.four impo.rtant and ~ost relevant.aS_pects of the case as disclosed in. the e~idence were comPlcteli oyerlooked.Or side-tra~ked.by the "High Court. Th~y are: (i' there a;c Satnadhs . ~ on the premises of the institution; (ii) _there are idols and photos of Hindu _deities; (iii} Bhai Bhagtu was a Udasi' Saint; and (iv) suCcession was frcim Gurq, to. Chclai ) ' .. •· ., ' . • • . - ' ' PR!TAM DAss'v .• GURUDWARA l'RABANDHAK yOMMlTTEE 565 Th~ petition. filed by _the ~ppella~t .under s.8 of the._ Act contained a clearavcnnent that the_ institution' had beeri set up.b)r.Bhai Bha£,tu who was a _:Udasi Saint and t4e presence· of th.rc.c Sainadhs of (1).Bhai .Bhagtu, (2) Baba Para~ Rain Ji; and (3) Mahant Sahib"Dass·Ji, was also assei·tcd. In the written statement the resPondent, after' a vag~e denial, had admitted- the institution to have ·been founded by Bhai Bhagtu. Pritani Dass, the <ipPellant did support his case. OrdinarjlY his evidence would have been treated a'S interesied as he happens to be. the party b'ut his assertions ; "have be~n _well corroborated."The same is sti:engthei~ed by the ·evidence of all-re!i_~on~ dent's witnesses. The eVidence of witnesses cJe<i,rly indicates: (i) that there are at- least t~o samadhs in the premises. 'of the" institution,....one being of. Bhai Bhagtu and the other.of hi.s moth¢r; (ii) the. existence of the "idol ·or Baba Srichan~, the founder of the U<lasi Sect in the pre1biscs. ·clearly the Sikhs'\VOuld ·notpepnit the idol of Baba Srichand in a· Gurudwa~a, while Udasis would oi:"dinarily install such an idol to perp~tuate the ~neil1ory of the founder ·of ~heir sect; (ifi) the sucession .was from Guru to Chela; aUd (iv) there are photos of Hindu deities in. the institution. These faCtS without a
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