KOCHI: The High Court has dismissed the petition filed by some members of the SN Trust, seeking to disqualify the officers and members of the Trust Board, hand over the administration to a receiver or administrator, cancel the voter list and stay the election process.

A division bench comprising Justice PB Suresh Kumar and Justice Johnson John dismissed the Special Petition filed under Section 34A of the Trust Scheme for the Administration of SN Trust. The petitioners had also demanded that the membership rules and election rules of the trust should be cancelled. The High Court rejected the petition by holding that a petition filed in the High Court under Section 34A of the Trust Scheme for such purposes is not legally valid.

The petitioners had alleged that the office bearers and members of the trust board were violating the scheme and there were irregularities in the voter list and election notification. However, the court accepted the argument of the office bearers and board members that the special petition under Section 34A of the trust scheme does not legally stand in the High Court. Division benches headed by Chief Justice Malimath and Justice Thottathil B Radhakrishnan had clarified this in the MK Raghavan case and the Ray Sudhan case. Section 34A of the Scheme also does not empower the High Court to entertain the requirements of removal of trustees, appointment of receiver or administrator and transfer of trust assets to any other party. Trust office bearers and board members also pointed out that the High Court has clarified in the Ray Sudhan case of 2016 that for such purposes it is necessary to file a complaint in the District Court under Section 92 of the Civil Procedure.