Case: His Holiness Digya Darshan Rajendra Ram Doss Vs. Devendra Doss

1. This appeal by certificate from a judgment of the High Court of Andhra Pradesh arises out of a dispute regarding the succession to the office of the spiritual head (Mohunt) of Sri Swami Mathiramjee Mutt, Tirumalai, Tirupati. The facts out of which the appeal arises may be stated briefly. Succession to the office of the Mohunt of the Mutt is admittedly regulated by custom which provides that upon the death of a mohunt his senior disciple becomes the next mohunt. This is, however, subject to the condition that the senior disciple must be a North-Indian Brahmin. In 1947 Sri Prayagadasjee Varu was the Mohunt of the Mutt. Upon his death in 1947 there was a dispute about the succession to the office of Mohunt between two contestants viz. Sri Narayanadasjee Varu and Sri Chetandossjee Varu. The dispute appears to have been resolved by the intervention of what is described as the Supreme Council of Mohunts viz. the Akada Panchayat. Under the terms of compromise which are to be found in Ex. B-8, Sri Narayanadasjee Varu became the Mohunt and after him, the office was to devolve on Chetendoss and after Chetandoss on a senior disciple of Narayanadasjee Varu. Narayanadasjee Varu died in 1958 and there was again a dispute as to who would become the next mohunt. Chetandoss claimed to be the mohunt under the terms of Ex. B-8 while Sri Rajendra Ram Doss Jee Varu the present appellant before us claimed the office by virtue of his status as a senior disciple of Narayanadasjee Varu. Rajendra Ram Doss Jee Varu filed a suit to established his right. The dispute and the suit were both settled by another agreement between Chetandoss and Rajendra Ram Doss Jee Varu the terms of which are to be found in Ex. B-1. Under this agreement Chetandoss was to succeed Narayanadasjee Varu and, after Chetandoss, the office was to go to Rajendra Ram Doss. Very soon after this, however, on 18 March, 1962 Chetandoss died. This became the occasion for yet another dispute about the succession to the office of the mohunt. Rajendra Ram Doss claimed to be mohunt in terms of the two agreements we have referred to just now and also by virtue of his being the only surviving disciple of Narayanadasjee Varu. Devendra Doss Jee, the respondent in this appeal, however, put up a claim to the office of mohunt by virtue of his position as a senior disciple of the last reigning mohunt Chetandoss. He was, however, a minor at that time and a suit was filed on his behalf by his next friend Sri Mukundadasjee Varu, Mohunt of Bugga Mutt, Tirupati. In that suit he claimed for declaration of his title to the office of the mohunt with all the properties that are attached to that office as well as an injunction against Rajendra Ram Doss Jee Varu restraining him from interfering with the affairs of the Mutt2. At the time of the trial of the suit both parties agreed about two propositions:(i) By immemorial custom and practice, upon the death of a mohunt his eldest or seniormost disciple succeeds to the Gadhi, and(ii) Only a North-Indian Brahmin is entitled to be a mohuntIt was contended by each party before the learned subordinate Judge that the other party was not a North-Indian Brahmin. The learned Subordinate Judge held that the defendant Rajendra Ram Doss was a North-Indian Brahmin and was also entitled to succeed as the senior disciple of Narayanadossjee Varu. According to the learned Subordinate Judge the period of mohuntship of Chetandoss was to be treated as a break in the practice of the customary rule that only the seniormost disciple succeeds upon the death of the reigning mohunt. Devendra Doss appealed against this judgment to the High Court. The High Court found on facts that Narayan Doss was not a North-Indian Brahmin and was, therefore, not entitled to being considered as a possible successor to the office of the mohunt. The High Court further held that since Devendra Doss was the senior disciple of Chetandoss he should by the rule of custom succeed to the office of the mohunt upon the death of Chetandoss. On these grounds the High Court upheld the plaintiffs appeal and gave a declaration in his favour and also an injunction against Narayan Doss from interfering with the affairs of the Mutt. Rajendra Ram Doss has now appealed from the decision of the High Court.

Reasoning:
7. In our opinion the rule of custom should prevail in all cases and if any aberrations have to be corrected such correction must take us in the direction of re-establishing the rule of custom. To that extent the principle laid down in the case of (1900) ILR 24 Mad 219 is a correct principle and has to be followed. That, however, does not resolve the difficulty in this case. Assuming that Chetan Doss was not a validly appointed Mohunt so that his period of office is to be ignored,the question still arises whether in making a reversion to the customary rule of succession to the office of a mohunt such reversion is to operate from the point where Chetan Doss period ended or from the point when this hadcommenced.It is only an accident that in this case Chetan Doss had a very brief period of office so that on his death it was at least possible to find one surviving disciple of the Mohunt who held the office before Chetan Doss succeeded him. In most cases if there is a break in the customary rule it may not at all be possible to revert back to the customary succession if one has to start from the point where the original break hadcommenced.In such cases even if it may be possible to revert to the customary practice, it may not be possible to go backd to the point where the customary line of succession had its original break. Thus, in this case though it has been possible to trace at least one person who was a disciple of Narayan Doss after whose death the customary practice was broken and the office handed over to an alleged interloper, even this lone survivor of the original line of succession is not a person who is competent to become the Mohunt by the immemorial custom of the Mutt. Therefore, it is not possible at all to re-establish the customary line of succession if one treats the period of Chetan Doss mohuntship as altogether non-existing. If we have to revert to the custom of the Mutt we cannot do so from the point of time when Narayan Doss died and Chetan Doss became the Mohunt. We have to do so from the point when Chetan Doss died. After all, Chetan Doss has been unquestionably the Mohunt of the Mutt. It is true that on a subsequent-re-examination of the whole matter, doubts have been cast on his title for the office but by common acceptance of the Chelas of the Mutt he had become the Mohunt and had remained a mohunt till his death. Ignoring the fact that he was really the Mohunt of this Mutt for a specific period does not help us reestablish the rule of custom prevailing in this Mutt. The only possible way in which the old custom may be re-established is by making a fresh start from the point of the death of Chetan Doss and that can only be done by allowing Devendra Doss to be the Mohunt. The High Court has come to a clear finding that Devendra Doss is a North-Indian Brahmin and is therefore fit to hold the office of a mohunt according to the custom of this Mutt. The High Court has also found that he was seniormost disciple of Chetan Doss who had been the reigning mohunt upto the point of time when the dispute regarding succession arose. If Rajendra Ram Doss right to become the Mohunt be rejected on the ground that Chetan Doss was perhaps an interloper the whole line of succession will be broken beyond repair or redemption, for, once it is accepted that Rajendra Ram Doss is not a North-Indian Brahmin there is no other living disciple of Narayan Doss who could restore the original line of succession. In our view it is not open to us to lay down a new rule of succession or to alter the rule of succession completely. The only way we can save the custom is by accepting something as fact which has so far been accepted by everybody concerned with the Mutt as a fact and which cannot any longer be undone without demolishing altogether the custom of the Mutt. In these circumstances we hold that Devendra Doss is entitled to succeed Chetan Doss as his senior-most disciple on the strength of the immemorial custom of this Mutt.