MULUGU BUTCHIAH Vs. THE ORIENT PUBLISHING COMPANY

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This is a petition to revise the order of the District Munsif, Tenali, directing the petitioner to value his suit under Order VII, Rule 2 Civil Procedure Code at the amount due to him approximately and pay the ad valorem Court-fee thereon.

(2.) The petitioner filed a suit for accounts (O.S. No. 342 of 1955) against the respondent-Company and valued the suit under Section 7 (4) (f) of the Court-fees Act at Rs. 10/- and paid a court-Fee of Rs. 1-1-0. The respondent company has its Head Office at Tenali and carries on business in educational publications. The case of the petitioner is that he was appointed as the agent of the respondent's company and it was agreed that he should be paid a 4% commission on the gross sale of books in the Hyderabad State. A branch of the respondent's firm was opened at Secunderabad and the petitioner was put in management of it. The petitioner, as Manager of the branch at Secunderabad, was submitting weekly, monthly and half - yearly returns of the accounts of the said branch to the respondent's firm at Tenali. The petitioner alleged that the total sale in the Hyderabad State would amount to three or four lakhs of rupees, that he was entitled to a 4% commission on the same, and that the sales had mounted up because of his efforts at getting authors of repute in Hyderabad State to write books and getting the books approved and introduced in the educational institutions of the State.

(3.) Taking the allegations in the plaint as the guiding factor, the learned District Munsif was of the view that the suit filed by the petitioner is not a suit for accounts and, therefore, the petitioner should value his suit under Order VII, Rule 2 Civil Procedure Code.