DEOKI NANDAN vs MURLIDHAR.

The Supreme Court held that the determination of whether a religious endowment is public or private is a mixed question of law and fact, relying on the legal concepts of public and private endowments. The Court clarified that while an idol is a juristic person under Hindu law, the true beneficiaries of a temple endowment are the worshippers, not the idol itself. In this case, the will's provisions indicated an intention to dedicate the temple to the public, as evidenced by the management structure and the performance of ceremonies, thus affirming the temple's status as a public place of worship.