YOUNUS KUNJU Vs. SPECIAL TAHSILDAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner is the appellant in C. M. A. 13/82, an appeal filed under S.22 of the Kerala Raw Cashewnuts (Procurement and Distribution) Act, 1981, for short, The Act.

(2.) The Government Pleader raised a preliminary objection namely that the C. R. P. is not maintainable in view of the fact that the judgment sought to be revised, though delivered by the Additional District Court, cannot be said to be one delivered by a court within the meaning of the Civil Courts Act because under S.22 the District Judge who is empowered to entertain the appeal, is functioning only as persona designata. In other words the District Judge under S.22 of the Act is not discharging the functions of a court, and hence his orders are not revisable under S.115 C. P. C. The question therefore is whether the District Judge functioning under S.22 of the Act. is a court within the Civil Courts Act or functioning only as persona designata ; and if it is found that he is functioning only as a persona designata, are his orders revisable under S.115 C. P. C. Relevant part of S.22 namely S.22(1), I shall read now:

(3.) The District Judge under the Kerala Civil Courts Act, 1957, for short The Civil Courts Act, is the Presiding Officer of the District Court. The jurisdiction of District Court is prescribed under S.11 and 12 of the Civil Courts Act. The jurisdiction under S.11 extends, subject to the provisions of Code . of Civil Procedure, 1908, to all original suits and proceedings of civil nature. It is the appellate jurisdiction that is prescribed under S.13. This section provides that appeals from the decrees and orders of a Munsiff's Court and where the amount or value of the subject matter of the suit does not exceed Rs. 25,000/- from the original decrees and orders of a Subordinate Judge's Court shall, when such appeals are allowed by law, lie to the District Court. As it is unnecessary to refer to the provisos of this Section to decide the issue before me, they have not been dealt with in this order.