MALLAPPA SIDRAMMAPPA Vs. SIDRAMAPPA BASAPPA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This Civil Revision Petition was referred to a Bench by the Officiating chief Justice as per his order dated 14.4.1961. In this proceeding we have to determine the true scope of section 7(4)(f) of the Court fees Act (as amended in Bombay by Act XII of 1954) which provision reads thus :

(2.) In order to determine the question of law that arises for consideration, it is necessary to briefly set out the facts of the case: The petitioner in this case was the plaintiff in the trial Court. He issued the defendant for accounts. He valued reliefs claimed in the suit at Rs. 105/- and paid a Court fee of Rs. 10/-. But later he paid an additional Court fee of Rs. 151-3-0. In due course a preliminary decree was passed and subsequently a final decree was passed. In the final decree the plaintiff was granted a decree in a sum of Rs. 2048-6-3. Not being satisfied with that decree, he went up in appeal to the learned District Judge, Dharwar. In the appeal he valued the reliefs claimed at Rs. 105/- and paid a Court fee of Rs. 10/-. The learned District Judge, after hearing the parties, passed the following order:

(3.) The question for our decision is whether the plaintiff can place his own valuation on the relief for accounts claimed by him in the appeal. It may be mentioned that in the appeal the plaintiff has not claimed any specific sum though in his grounds of appeal he has pointed out that the trial Court referred in rejecting certain items found in the accounts. In other words, in the appeal he claimed a fresh accounting. Whether such a relief is governed by Section 7(iv)(f) of the Court fees Act is the point for our decision.