V C JAYARAM MUDALIAR Vs. C M SIVARAM

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS appeal is filed by the plaintiff in O. S. No. 259 of 1956 on the file of the fourth Assistant Judge, City Civil Court, Madras.

(2.) ON 6th February 1953, the defendant C. M. Sivaram executed two hundis for rs. 4,000 and Rs. 1000 respectively payable on 6th June 1953, in favour of srimathi Rukmini Ammal or order, for value received in cash. These hundis according to the plaintiff were really promissory notes. The plaintiff got assignments of the above two hundis in his favour from Rukmini Ammal on 20th january 1956, for valid consideration. The suit was filed for recovery of the above amount with interest.

(3.) THE plea of the defendant was that at the instance of a friend of his one T. S. Shanmugham, P. W. 2 in the case, for the purpose of accommodating the said shanmugham, but without any receipt of consideration, the defendant affixed his signature on two blank hundis. However, the body of the two Hundies have been later on written up and it amounts to forgery. There was a further plea by the defendant that the Hundies, even if they were promissory notes executed for valid consideration, they were payable at a specified place, namely, Madras, that in such circumstances, under the provisions of Section 69 of the Negotiable instruments Act, presentment at that place, was an obligatory requirement, but in this case, such a presentment had not been made, and therefore the suit was not maintainable. There was also a plea that the assignment to the plaintiff lacked consideration; and that the plaintiff was not a holder in due course.