7. General powers and duties of Official Trustee.—(1) Subject to, and in accordance with, the
provisions of this Act and the rules made thereunder, the Official Trustee may, if he thinks fit,—
(a) act as an ordinary trustee;
(b) be appointed trustee by a Court of competent jurisdiction.
(2) Save as hereinafter expressly provided, the Official Trustee shall have the same powers, duties and
liabilities and be entitled to the same rights and privileges and be subject to the same control and orders of the
Court as any other trustee acting in the same capacity.
(3) The Official Trustee may decline, either absolutely or except on such conditions as he may impose, to
accept any trust.
1. Subs. by the A.O. 1950, for “Divisions”.
2. Subs. by Act 48 of 1964, s. 5, for sub-section (2).
3. Sub-section (3) omitted by the A.O. 1937.
4. Section 5 was renumbered as sub-section (1) thereof by Act 48 of 1964, s. 6.
5. Ins, by s. 6, ibid.
6. Subs. by the A.O. 1950, for “Division” which had been subs. by the A.O. 1937, for “Presidency”.
5
(4) The Official Trustee shall not accept, any trust under any composition or scheme of arrangement for
the benefit of creditors, nor of any estate known or believed by him to be insolvent.
(5) The Official Trustee shall not, save as provided by any rules made under this Act, accept any trust for
a religious purpose or any trust which involves the management or carrying on of any business.
(6) The Official Trustee shall not administer the estate of a deceased person, unless he is expressly
appointed sole executor of, and sole trustee under, the will of such person.
(7) The Official Trustee shall always be sole trustee, and it shall not be lawful to appoint the Official
Trustee to be trustee along with any other person.
8. Official Trustee may with consent be appointed trustee of settlement by grantor.—(1) Any person
intending to create a trust other than a trust which the Official Trustee is prohibited from accepting under the
provisions of this Act may by the instrument creating the trust and with the consent of the Official Trustee,
appoint him by that name or any other sufficient description to be the trustee of the property subject to such
trust:
Provided that the consent of the Official Trustee shall be recited in the said instrument and that such
instrument shall be duly executed by the Official Trustee.
(2) Upon such appointment the property subject to the trust shall vest in such Official Trustee, and shall
be held by him upon the trusts declared in such instrument.
9. Appointment of Official Trustee as trustee by will.—When the Official Trustee has by that name or
any other sufficient description been appointed trustee under any will, the executor of the will of 1
[the
testator] or the administrator of his estate shall, after obtaining probate or letters of administration, notify in
the prescribed manner the contents of such will to such Official Trustee; and, if such Official Trustee
consents to accept the trust, then upon the execution by such executor or administrator of an instrument in
writing transferring the property subject to the Official Trustee, such property shall vest in such Official
Trustee, and shall be held by him upon the trusts expressed in the said will:
Provided that the consent of the Official Trustee shall be recited in the said instrument and that such
instrument shall be duly executed by the Official Trustee.
10. Power of High Court to appoint Official Trustee to be trustee of property.—(1) If any property is
subject to a trust other than a trust which the Official Trustee is prohibited from accepting under the
provisions of this Act, and there is no trustee within the local limits of the ordinary or extraordinary original
civil jurisdiction of the High Court willing or capable to act in the trust, the High Court may on application
make an order for the appointment of the Official Trustee by that name with his consent to be the trustee of
such property.
(2) Upon such order such property shall vest in the Official Trustee and shall be held by him upon the
same trusts as the same was held previously to such order, and the previous trustee or trustees (if any) shall be
exempt from the liability as trustees of such property save in respect of acts done before the date of such
order.
(3) Nothing in this section shall be deemed to affect the provisions of 2
* * * the Indian Trusts Act, 1882
(2 of 1882).
11. Power of private trustees to appoint Official Trustee to be trustee of property.—(1) If any
property is subject to a trust other than a trust which the Official Trustee is prohibited from accepting under
the provisions of this Act, and all the trustees or the surviving or continuing trustee or trustees and all persons
1. Subs. by Act 18 of 1919, s. 2 and first Schedule, for “such testator”.
2. The words and figures “the Trustees' and Mortgagees‟ Powers Act, 1866, or” omitted by Act 48 of 1964, s. 7.
6
beneficially interested in the trust arc desirous that the Official Trustee shall be appointed in the room of such
trustee or trustees, it shall be lawful for such trustee or trustees, by an instrument in writing to appoint the
Official Trustee by that name or any other sufficient description with his consent to be the trustee of such
property:
Provided that the consent of the Official Trustee shall be recited in the said instrument and that such
instrument shall be duly executed by him.
(2) Upon such appointment such property shall vest in the Official Trustee and shall be held by him upon
the same trusts as the same was held previously to such appointment, and the previous trustee or trustees shall
be exempt from all liability as trustees of such property save in respect of acts done before the date of such
appointment.
12. Executor or administrator may pay to Official Trustee legacy, share, etc., of minor or
lunatic.—(1) If any 1
[minor] or lunatic is entitled to any gift, legacy or share of the assets of a deceased
person, it shall be lawful for the person by whom such gift is made, or executor or administrator by whom
such legacy or share is payable or transferable or any trustee of such gift, legacy or share, to transfer the same
by an instrument in writing to the Official Trustee by that name or any other sufficient description with his
consent:
Provided that the consent of the Official Trustee shall be recited in the said instrument and that such
instrument shall be duly executed by the Official Trustee.
(2) Any money or property transferred to the Official Trustee under this section shall vest in him and
shall be subject to the same provisions as arc contained in this Act as to other property vested in such Official
Trustee.
13. Official Trustee not to be required to give bond or security.—(1) No Official Trustee shall be
required by any Court to enter into any bond or security on his appointment in any capacity under this Act.
(2) No Official Trustee 2
* * * shall be required to verify otherwise than by his signature any petition
presented by him under the provisions of this Act, and if the facts stated in any such petition are not within
3
[his personal knowledge], the petition may be verified and subscribed by any person competent to make the
verification.
14. Entry of Official Trustee not to constitute notice of a trust.—The entry of the Official Trustee by
that name in the books of a company shall not constitute notice of a trust; and a company shall not be entitled
to object to enter the name of the Official Trustee on its register by reason only that the Official Trustee is a
corporation; and, in dealing with property, the fact that the person dealt with is the Official Trustee shall not
of itself constitute notice of a trust.
15. Liability of Government.— (1) The 4
* * * Government 5
* * * shall be liable to make good all sums
required to discharge any liability which the Official Trustee, if he were a private trustee, would be personally
liable to discharge, except when the liability is one to which neither the Official Trustee nor any of his
officers has in any way contributed or which neither he nor any of his officers could by the exercise of
reasonable diligence have averted, and in either of those cases the Official Trustee shall not, nor shall the
6
[Government], be subject to any liability.
(2) Nothing in sub-section (1) shall be deemed to render the 6
[Government] or any Official Trustee
appointed under this Act liable for anything done by or under the authority of any Official Trustee before the
commencement of this Act.
1. Subs. by Act 48 of 1964, s. 8, for “infant”.
2. The words “or Deputy Official Trustee” omitted by s. 9, ibid.
3. Subs. by s. 9, ibid., for “the Official Trustees' personal knowledge”.
4. The words “revenues of the” omitted by s. 10, ibid.
5. The words “of India” omitted by Act 21 of 1922, s. 3.
6. The words “revenues of the Government of India” have been successively amended by Act 21 of 1922, s. 3, the A.O. 1937 and Act
48 of 1964, s. 10, to read as above.
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16. Notice of suit not required in certain cases.— Nothing in section 80 of the Code of Civil Procedure,
1908 (5 of 1908) shall apply to any suit against the Official Trustee in which no relief is claimed against him
personally.