Rajasthan Court of Wards Act, 1951
No: 28 Dated: Oct, 03 1951
The Rajasthan Court of Wards Act, 1951
Act No. 28 of 1951
An Act to consolidate and amend the law relating to the Court of Wards in Rajasthan
Whereas it is expedient to consolidate and amend the law relating to the Court of Wards in Rajasthan:
It is hereby enacted as follows:-
CHAPTER I
Preliminary
1. Title, extent and commencement. - (1) This Act may be called the Rajasthan Court of Wards Act, 1951.
(2) It extends to the whole of Rajasthan.
(3) It shall come into force at once.
2. Repeal. - (1) The laws and enactments specified in the First Schedule to this Act are hereby repealed.
(2) But all rules and appointments made,notifications and orders issued, authorities and powers conferred, farms and leases granted, rights acquired, liabilities incurred, and other things done under the laws and enactments hereby repealed shall so far as may be, be deemed to have been made, issued, conferred, granted, acquired, incurred and done under this Act.
(3) Any enactment or document referring to the laws and enactments hereby repealed shall, so far as may be, be construed to refer to this Act or the corresponding portion thereof,
3. Interpretation. - The General Clauses Act, 1897, of the Central Legislature shall mutatis mutandis apply, so far as may be, to this Act, as it applies to a Central Act.
4. Definitions. - In this Act, unless there be something repugnant in the subject or context-
(i) "estate" means any land or interest in land held by a person under a State grant, including any other properties held by such grantee:
(ii) "Government" means the Government of Rajasthan;
(iii) "minor" means a person who, under section 3 of the Indian Majority Act. 1875, has not attained his majority:
(iv) "landholder" means a person holding an estate;
(v) "prescribed" means prescribed by this Act or the rules made thereunder;
(vi) "state grant" means a grant of land or an interest therein made by the Ruler or the Government of a covenanting State or recognised or declared by Government as having been so made;
(vii) "ward" means a disqualified landholder whose person or estate or any part of whose estate is under the superintendence of the Court of Wards or a land holder in regard to whose estate a declaration has been made under section 10.
CHAPTER II
The Court of Wards
5. Rajasthan Court of Wards. - The Board of Revenue for Rajasthan shall be,and is hereby constituted, the Court of Wards, for the whole of Rajasthan.
6. Control of the Government. - The authority vested in the Court of Wards shall be subject to the control of the Government.
7. Powers of the Court of Wards, how exercised. - (1) The Court of Wards may exercise all or any powers conferred on it by this Act, through the [x x x] Collectors of the districts in which any part of the estate of its wards may be situated, or through any other person whom it may appoint for such purpose.
(2) The Court of Wards may,with the sanction of the Government, from time to time, delegate any of its powers to such [x x x] Collectors or other persons as aforesaid, and may at any time with the like sanction revoke such delegation.
CHAPTER III
Assumption of Superintendence of Person and Estate
8. Landholders when to be deemed disqualified. - (1) Landholders shall be deemed to be disqualified to manage their own estate when they are-
(a) Minors:
(b) persons adjudged by a competent Civil Court to be of unsound mind and incapable of managing their own estate;
(c) persons declared by the Government to be incapable of managing or unfit to manage their own estate. -
(i) owing to any physical or mental defect or infirmity unfitting them for the management of their own estate;
(ii) owing to their having been convicted of a non-bailable offence or being unfitted by vicious habits or bad character for the management of their own estate;
(iii) owing to their having entered upon a course of extravagance;
(iv) owing to their failure without sufficient reason to dis charge the debts and liabilities due by them;
(v) owing to such mismanagement as has caused general discontent among the tenants:
Provided that no such declaration shall be made under sub-clause (iii) or (iv), unless the Government is satisfied that such extravagance or such failure to discharge the said debts and liabilities is likely to lead to the dissipation of the estate.
(2) No declaration under clause (c) of sub-section (1) shall be made until the landholder has been furnished with a detailed statement of the grounds on which it is proposed to disqualify him and has had an opportunity of showing cause why such declaration should not be made.
9. Inquiry into circumstances of a landholder by order of the Government. - (1) The Government may, direct the Collector, or such other person as it may appoint, to make an inquiry into the circumstances of any landholder and the extent of his indebtedness.
For the purpose of compelling the attendance of witnesses and the production of documents in the course of such inquiry the Collector or other person appointed to make the inquiry may exercise all or any of the powers of a Civil Court under the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908.
(2) The Collector shall notify in the Rajasthan Gazette the date on which the inquiry will be held. A copy of the notification shall be served on the landholder. The Collector shall also publish the said notification in the manner prescribed for the publication: of notifications of assumption of charge by the Court of Wards.
(3) From the date of the publication of the said notification in the Rajasthan Gazette the prohibitions contained in clause (a) of section 37 of this Act shall apply to the landholder so long as the inquiry is proceeding, and until the orders of the Government are passed thereon.