SINHA,J. - (1.) THIS is a rule issued by me on the pltfs. in a suit instituted by them and now pending before the fourth Ct. of the Munsiff at Alipore to show cause why the suit should not be removed from that Ct. to the H. C., under the provisions of Clause 13, Letters Patent, and there tried in its extraordinary Original Jurisdiction.
(2.) THE facts of the case are briefly as follows: There is a School in southern Calcutta, known as the Chakrabere H. E. School. It is located, partly in premises No. 23/1 Chakrabere Road and partly in premises No. 93 Bakul Began Road, in Bhawanipore. Several hundred students are on the roll, so that it is an institution of no mean dimensions. To cater for the intellectual needs of so many Juvenile persons of tender years, one would have thought that there existed an atmosphere of calm tranquillity, with the gentle pursuit of knowledge, which is the characteristic of all true seats of learning. But in the case of this most unfortunate Institution this is not to be. The growing lives of these hundreds of future citizens is of no consequence amidst the clash and din of contending factions, to whom the only thing that seems to matter is the solution to the question as to who should run the School. I am overwhelmed to see the public spirit displayed on this burning topic, the amount of energy spent, breath wested, ink spilled, and feelings embittered, which to say the least, is worthy of a better cause. On this appln I am not called upon to apportion the blame, nor, I am happy to say, is it necessary to do so. But I make no secret of the fact that I am impelled by a sense of urgency in the matter, and it has an undoubted bearing on the ultimate fate of this appln. I feel that unless something is done quickly and decisively, the question as to who should run the School would indeed become an academical question in more senses than one, there will be no school to run. The Chakrabere H. E. School was founded sometime in the year 1937. It appears that it has a special constitution whereby its managing Committee was chosen by the General Committee of the South Suburban School Calcutta, a well known Institution. This managing Committee, refd. to in the pleadings as the 'Old Committee' was managing the School and one Someswar Prasad Mukherjee was the secretary thereof. One Jnanendra Nath Sanyal was for sometime the Head Master. In or about January 1950, the managing Committee ordered his dismissal. The grievance was that he was guilty of maladministration and neglect of duty. It is, however, stated by the contesting resps. that he was in reality, a hard working, conscientitious and popular teacher, who unfortunately incurred the displeasure of the secretary, who was the 'de -facto' ruler of the School and whose arbitrary actions had brought the Institution to the state of collapse. It is stated that the Guardians of the students had to move in the matter and sometime in January 1.950, one Biswanath Bagchi, purporting to act as the representative of the Guardians and students, filed a suit before the fourth Ct. of the Munsif at Alipore being Title No. 143 of 1950, for a declaration that the old Committee was not a legally constituted Committee and for other reliefs. This suit was compromised between the parties on or about 26 -7 -1950. The suit stood withdrawn, each party bearing his own cost. The Headmaster was to render accounts, and all things done by him in good faith were to be ratified. In or about May 1950, twelve persons formed a Committee and claimed to manage the School. One side alleges that this Committee was 'self constituted', and attempted to usurp all powers.
(3.) THE contesting resps. urge that it was 'A properly constituted Committee, duly formed. and entitled to manage the affairs of the School'. The compromise of the suit No. 143 of 1950, introduced only a brief period of truce. This was eventually folld. by another title suit in the same Ct. instituted by pltfs. 2 herein, together with one Karunamoy Ghosh, against the members of the 'Old Committee', and several other persons, being suit No. 705 of 1950, for a declaration that the pltfs. in the said suit were lawfully entitled to manage the School for a declaration that the Old Committee was not entitled to function and for other reliefs. That suit is still pending. To that suit the University of Calcutta, the present appct. before me is not a party.;