(1.) The suit O.S. No. 75 of 1959 on the file of the Subordinate Judge's Court, Chittoor, was filed by Sri Venkatachalapathy Mills Ltd., Puttur, represented by its Managing Director Sri A. Chengaiah Chetty against five defendants who were said to be the ex-Directors of the plaintiff-Company. The suit was filed for a decree directing the defendants jointly and severally to pay the plaintiff-Company the amount claimed viz., Rs. 96,419 with further interest at 5 per cent. from the date of the plaint till realisation and for directing the defendants jointly and severally to pay the plaintiff-Company the costs of the suit with interest thereon. The basis on which the suit was filed was that the defendants, when they were the Directors of the plaintiif-company, advanced loan to a firm of which they were partners or to a private company of which they were Directors or members and this was contrary to the provisions of section 86-D of the Indian Companies Act, 1913.
(2.) Therefore, it was claimed by the plaintiff-company that the defendants, who were the ex-Directors and who caused loss to the company by acting contrary to the provisions of section 86-D of the Indian Companies Act, 1913, were jointly and severally liable to the plaintiff-company to make good the loss suffered by it. Pending the suit, the 4th defendant had died on 24th April, 1963. The plaintiff-company filed an application in the lower Court on 17th February, 1964 to bring on record the legal representatives of the deceased 4th defendant with the allegation that the 4th defendant died within 90 days from the date of the filing of the application. The proposed legal representatives of the 4th defendant filed a counter dated 24th March, 1964, pointing out that the 4th defendant died about 11 months before that date.
(3.) The exact date is not given. There is controversy as to when this counter was filed in Court. Mr. Kuppuswamy, the learned Counsel for the respondent in this revision petition, says that this counter was filed only in April, 1964. Thereafter, the plaintiff- company filed two applications on 31st July, 1964, one to excuse the delay in seeking to set aside the abatement caused by the death of the 4th defendant and another to set aside the abatement. It is stated that the petition to bring on record the legal representatives was already filed on 17th February, 1964. These applications were opposed on behalf of the legal representatives of the 4th defendant on two grounds that no sufficient reasons are disclosed by the plaintiff-company for not filing the petition to bring on record the legal representatives within the period of 90 days prescribed by the Limitation Act and that there is no reason for the delay at any rate in filing the petition to set aside the abatement. It is pointed out that such a petition will have to be filed within 60 days after the expiry of the 90 days prescribed for bringing on record the legal representatives. Secondly, it was urged that the cause of action did not survive against the legal representatives of the 4th defendant and that the suit therefore abated so far as the deceased 4th defendant was concerned. These two objections were over-ruled by the lower Court and the legal representatives of the 4th defendant were brought on record. Hence, these civil revision petitions under section 115 of the Code of Civil Procedure are filed by the legal representatives of the 4th defendant.