ATTELI SWAMY Vs. STATE OF HYDERABAD

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This is a plaintiffs' appeal against the decree dated 22nd April, 1960 made by the Additional Chief Judge of the City Civil Court of Hyderabad, dismissing their suit for damages for the breach of an abkari contract and for a connected injunction.

(2.) The two plaintiffs are abkari contractors residing at Secunderabad. At the auction of sendhi shops held on 31st July, 1951, they took the Balamrai shop on a monthly rental of Rs. 6,555 and the Marredpally shop on a monthly rental of Rs. 10,601 for the year from 1st October, 1951 to 30th September, 1952. Their case is that the Excise Department committed breaches of the contracts by not giving them a considerable number of trees for tapping, to which they were entitled under the contracts, with the result that they Were unable to obtain sufficient toddy for sale in their shops and were consequently unable to pay the rental amounts.

(3.) Under the directions of the Honourable Minister for Excise, the two shops were reauctioned on 19thMay, 1952 to other persons for a total monthly rental of Rs. 8,700. On 13th September, 1952, the District Collector of Hyderabad issued a notice to the plaintiffs under section 118 of the Land Revenue Act demanding Rs. 79,379-15-8 as the arrears due from them, which included Rs. 35,223 on account of the loss of rental at the re-auction. The plaintiffs claimed that owing to the breaches of the contracts on the part of the Government, they suhered a loss of I.G. Rs. 1,54,658-9-2. They also contended that they were not liable to pay the alleged arrears. On these grounds, they instituted the suit on 3rd June, 1955 against the State of Hyderabad represented by the Secretary for Revenue and Excise and against the Commissioner of Excise, for recovery from the State Government of I.G. Rs. 1,54,658-9-2 as damages and for a permanent injunction restraining the said defendants from recovering any amount from them in respect of the abkari contracts in question.