B NATHOO RAM KHANNA Vs. KRISHNA JI MAHARAJ

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This is an appeal by the plaintiff against an order of the Civil Judge of Moradabad directing him to make good a deficiency in court-fee which was discovered after the institution of the suit.

(2.) The suit was instituted on 4th August 1946. On a question of the sufficiency of court-fee having been raised by the Inspector of Stamps, Mr. D. P. Mehrotra, who was then the Civil Judge, held that the court-fee paid was sufficient. At the time that order wag made, no appearance had been entered by the defendants. Subsequently, in the written statement filed by them, the question of court-fee was again raised. Thereafter an issue was framed by Mr. D. P. Kumar who , had succeeded Mr. Mehrotra as Civil Judge, and he, on 16th April 1948 held that the court-fee paid was insufficient and directed the plaintiff to make good the deficiency. The plaintiff has come in appeal to this Court against that order.

(3.) The point which the case raises is whether it was open to the learned Judge to consider the question relating to the sufficiency or otherwise of the court-fee paid by the appellant after the matter had been raised by the Chief Inspector of Stamps and an order had been passed on it by his predecessor in office. The question whether the order of Mr. Mehrotra in regard to the amount of the court-fee payable by the plaintiff was correct or not is immaterial. What is important to note about it is that it was passed after the point had been raise I by an officer competent to raise it under Section 24A, Court-fees Act. Against that order, it was open to the Chief Inspector of Stamps, under Section 6B (1), to file a revision in this Court within three months from the date of receipt of such order. This was not done, with the result that Mr. Mehrotra's order became final so far as the Chief Inspector of Stamps was concerned. Sub-section (4) of Section 6 of the Act, which is an amendment of the Court-fees Act made by the United Provinces Act, XIX [19] of 1988, lays down that: