NARAYANA REDDIAR Vs. M N PATTAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The judgment debtor is the appellant and this appeal is directed against the order of the lower court repelling his contention that the decree stood discharged by payments made by him from time to time. Although there was no application for permission to repay the debt in instalments under the provisions of the Debt Relief Act, it was contended that such an application was unnecessary under law and that the amount recoverable under the decree must be subject to the concessions granted under the Act. The decree holder contended that the debt itself did not fall, under the purview of the Debt Relief Act and that the payments made by the judgment debtor were in obedience to the orders of the execution court in the course of execution proceedings and were not made under the provisions of the Act which granted certain concessions to debtors generally.

(2.) The decree was passed on 8.6.1113 for the recovery of the amount due under a hypothecation bond dated 23.10.1109. The decree holder took out execution and on 14.6.1115, the judgment debtor paid Rs. 50/- to the decree holder and prayed for two months' time to pay the balance amount due under the decree. The time asked for, was granted on the consent of the decree holder. The decree holder again applied for execution and the decree schedule properties were duly proclaimed for sale. The sale was posted to 5.8.1116 and on that day, the judgment debtor applied for an adjournment of sale on payment of Rs. 50/- to the decree holder. The sale was adjourned to 16.8.1116 and the judgment debtor obtained a stay of the sale on payment of Rs. 157-14 chs. 0 to the decree holder. The sale came up again on 27.11.1116 and on the application of the appellant, the sale was adjourned to 22.12.1116 and he was directed to deposit 1/8th of the decree amount that remained due. An amount of Rs. 199 was deposited on 22.12.1116 and the sale was sayed.

(3.) The Debt Relief Act came into force early in the year 1116. The appellant filed an application before the execution court on 31.12.1116 stating that the balance of the amount due under the decree was Rs. 1390 and that he may be permitted to discharge the debt by payment in instalments of Rs. 50/- per month. There was no prayer in it for the granting of the concessions due to him under the Debt Relief Act. The execution court ordered on 9.4.1117 that if he deposited one-sixth of the amount due within two weeks he will be granted some time for the payment of the balance due under the decree. An amount of Rs. 233 was deposited on 23.4.1117. The decree holder however applied for execution on 28.4.1117. The appellant then deposited Rs. 50/- on 9.7.1117 and the court ordered that the further amount required to make up a sixth of the amount due should be deposited within fourteen days. An application was filed thereafter for extending the time for payment by two months and time was granted till 3.8.1117. He deposited Rs. 50/- on 3.8.1117 and it was ordered on that day that he should deposit