RATAN LAL Vs. MADARI

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This is an appeal under Section 6 A, Court-fees Act, by the defendant who has been called upon to make good a deficiency in court fee in regard to the amount of set-off claimed by him in the suit.

(2.) It appears that the plaintiffs respondents filed a suit for recovery of Rs. 38,000. The plain-tiff's case was that they acted as Commission Agents of the defendant and supplied vegetables and fruits to the Military authorities at Jhansi on behalf of the defendant who is a vegetable merchant.

(3.) The claim has been laid at Rs. 38,000 as the unpaid price for the supplies made by the plaintiffs. The defendant contested the suit. He filed a written statement in which he admitted that he entered into a contract with the Military authorities for the supply of vegetables and fruits. Thereafter, according to him, he entered into a contract with the plaintiffs under which the plaintiffs were to supply the vegetables and fruits to the Military authorities on his behalf on certain terms. According to the defendant the plaintiffs did not supply some of the things to the Military authorities in time, according to the terms of the contract. Thereupon he (the defendant) had to make purchases from other persons at higher rates in order to supply the goods to the Military authorities in time. He thereby suffered a loss of Rs. 32,588-4-2. It was also the case of the defendant that the balance due to the plaintiffs in respect of the goods actually supplied by them to the Military authorities was only Rs. 30,817-14-3 and not Rupees 38,000 as claimed in the plaint. As against this amount the defendant claimed Rs. 32,538-4-2 as the price of the articles supplied by him to the Military authorities owing to the failure of the plaintiffs to supply them in time. In paras. 25 and 29 of the written statement the defendant claimed that the plaintiffs' suit was liable to be dismissed with costs, whereas the defendant was entitled to a decree of Rs. 1720-5-11 against the plaintiffs with costs.