IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE, ANDHRA PRADESH AT HYDERABAD (Special Original Jurisdiction) THURSDAY, THE TWENTY EIGHTH DAY OF AUGUST TWO THOUSAND AND EIGHT PRESENT THE HON'BLE MR JUSTICE RAMESH RANGANATHAN WRIT PETITION NO : 21706 of 2000 Between: ..... PETITIONER AND .....RESPONDENT(S) Petition under Article 226 of the constitution of India praying that in the circumstances stated in the Aﬃdavit ﬁled herein the High Court will be pleased to Counsel for the Petitioner:MR.P.YADAGIRI RAO Counsel for the Respondent No.: GP FOR ENDOWMENTS The Court made the following : THE HON'BLE SRI JUSTICE RAMESH RANGANATHAN WRIT PETITION NO.21706 OF 2000 ORDER: The proceedings dated 17.10.2000 is impugned in the Writ Petition whereby the Commissioner, Endowments informed that a Trust Board would be constituted for Sri Venkateshwara Swamy temple, Chikkadpally, Hyderabad by the Government/Commissioner under Section 15 of Act 30 of 1987, after 15 days from the date of notice. Interested persons were asked to send their application for trusteeship in the prescribed proforma vide Form II of the Rules under Section 17 (3) within 15 days from the date of notice to the Commissioner, Endowments Department, Hyderabad. Section 17 of Act 30 of 1987 relates to the procedure for making appointment of trustees and their term. The appointment of trustees is under Section 15 of the Act, whereunder the Commissioner is empowered to constitute a Board of Trustees. The manner in which the trustees are to be appointed is governed by the provisions of the Appointment of Trustees Rules, 1987. Under Rule 4(1), the authority competent to appoint trustees shall, forthwith on a report received under Rule 3, cause publication of the notice in Form-I. The notice in Form-I requires the competent authority to inform that a Trust Board would be constituted after 20 days from the date of the notice. It is necessary to note that the word “twenty days” was substituted by G.O.Ms.No.9 dated 08.01.1990 for the words “ﬁfteen” which existed earlier. Similarly interested persons were also required to send their applications within twenty days from the date of the notice. The impugned notice herein, which prescribes 15 days, is contrary to the time limit speciﬁed in Form-I of the Trustee Rules, 1987 and since it is in violation of the statutory conditions, the impugned proceedings are liable to be quashed on this short ground. The counter aﬃdavit ﬁled on behalf of the 1st and 2nd respondents by the Deputy Commissioner, Endowments deals with several other contentions raised by the petitioner but is silent on this statutory prescription. The impugned proceedings are, therefore, quashed. Needless to state that this order shall not preclude the respondents from complying with the requirements of the Trustee Rules, 1987 in inviting applications and appointing trustees afresh. The Writ Petition is allowed. However, in the circumstances, without costs. ____________ 28-08-2008 GS