GHIRANJI LAL KHAITAN Vs. MOTI LAL SARAOGI DEAD

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This appeal by certificate arises from the decision of the Calcutta High Court in its appellate decree No. 1033 of 1956. The appellants are the legal representatives of the original plaintiff Chiranji Lal Khaitan. The plaintiff was the owner of the suit property. According to the plaint case, the plaintiff leased out the property described in Sch. III to the plaint, a vacant plot to the defendant in June 1943 on a monthly rental of Rs. 20/-. It was an oral lease. The defendant took on lease that property for the purpose of carrying on his motor business. But in the year 1947 without the plaintiff's knowledge the defendant constructed several structures on the land. In 1948 the plaintiff asked him to remove those structures but the defendant did not comply with that demand, hence in September 1948, the plaintiff served on him a notice to quit determining the tenancy with effect from the 1st November, 1948. As the defendant did not surrender possession of the property, the plaintiff instituted the suit from which this appeal arises on January 3, 1940 in the court of Munsif at Purulia. At the time of the institution of the suit, the suit property was within the limits of the State of Bihar, The defendant resisted the suit on various grounds. The learned trial Judge rejected all those grounds and decreed the suit on May,1952, as prayed for and directing the defendant to deliver vacant possession of the suit plot after removing the structures put up by him. The decree of the trial court was affirmed by the first appellate court on July 11, 1952. Meanwhile in 1956 some of the border areas of the Bihar State were transferred to the State of West Bengal as a result of the amendment of the Constitution. One of the areas that stood transferred to the State of West Bengal is that concerned in the present litigation. The transfer in question took place on November 1, 1956. The defendant filed a second appeal against the aforementioned decree in the High Court of Patna on September 7, 1956 and the same was admitted by the High court on September 10, 1956. That appeal stood transferred to the High Court of Calcutta under the provisions of the Bihar and West Bengal Transfer of Territories Act, 1956, the Act under which the transfer of territories mentioned earlier took place. Part VII of that Act provided that the law then in force in the transferred territory was to continue until otherwise provided by the competent legislature or other competent authority. In 1956 the West Bengal legislature enacted the West Bengal Transferred Territories (Assimilation of Laws) Act, 1958 (to be hereinafter referred to as the '1958 Act') . That Act came into force on July 1, 1959. The second appeal filed by the defendant which had stood transferred to the Calcutta High Court came up for hearing before that court on August 10, 1965. Before the High Court the defendant's Counsel pressed for decision only two points viz:

(2.) The High Court rejected the first contention. Agreeing with the courts below, it came to the conclusion that there is no reliable evidence to show that the structures in question were put up either with the consent or knowledge of the plaintiff. But it accepted the second contention advanced on behalf of the defendant and dismissed the suit. Hence this appeal.

(3.) An the courts below have concurrently come to the conclusion that the defendant has failed to establish his plea of equitable estoppel. That conclusion is based on findings of fact. We see no reason to review those findings.