KASIRAJU LAKSHMIKANTA RAO Vs. DENDUKURI VENKATESWARLU

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS Revision Petition is directed against an order of the District Court, Guntur, and raises the question as to whether it is necessary, under the provisions of the Arbitration Act, to file a separate petition to set aside an award, and if so, is it chargeable to Court-fee.

(2.) THE material facts are these : The petitioner (hereinafter referred to as the plaintiff) filed O. Section 78 of 1957 on the file of the Court of the Subordinate Judge, Guntur, for a decree directing rendition of accounts by the 1st respondent (hereinafter referred to as the defendant. Stated generally, the case between the parties had reference to the rendering of accounts and settlement of sums due thereon in connection with the alleged entrustment of certain monies by the plaintiff to the defendant Pending suit, the dispute between the parties was referred to arbitration. The arbitrators made their award on 13-10-1957, and it was filed in the Court of the Subordinate Judge, Guntur on the following day. Thereupon the Court gave notice of the filing of the award to the parties. On 11-11-1957, both the plaintiff and the defendant preferred objections to the award. Besides filing objections, the defendant filed a petition with a Court-fee of Re. 1/- on the same day, under Section 33 of the Arbitration Act, to set aside the award on various grounds. On the following day, the Court returned the petition for payment of deficit Court-fee granting a days time for compliance. The petition was represented on 13-11-1957 with a further Court-fee stamp of Rs. 4.00. The Court again returned the petition on the 15th, for payment of the balance of the Court-fee of Rs. 195.00 to make up Rs. 200.00 which is the fee prescribed under Article 11 (m) Schedule II of the Andhra Court Fees and Suits Valuation Act, 1956. There being no substantial petition to set aside the award, the Subordinate Judge refused to consider the objections which alone were before him, and on 26-11-1957, passed a decree in terms of the award. Two days later i.e. on 28-11-1957, the defendant represented the unnumbered Original Petition with the deficit Court-fee. On the same day he filed two applications, I.A. No. 2562 (a) of 1957 under Sections 149 and 151, Civil Procedure Code, for excusing the delay in the representation of the petition for setting aside the award; and I.A. 2562 (b) of 1957 under Sections 148, 149 and 151, Civil Procedure Code, for extension of time for payment of deficit Court-fee. Both these applications were, however, dismissed on 9-4-1958.

(3.) NOW, Article 158, Limitation Act, as amended by Arbitration Act, 1940, provides a period of thirty days from the date of service of the notice of filing of the award for an application to set aside an award or to get the award remitted for reconsideration. It is not clear from the record as to when the defendant was served with notice of the award; but the parties are agreed that the period provided by Article 158 expired on 14-11-1958.