SALAMKAYALA VEERARAGHAVAYYA Vs. VALLURUPALLI KRISHNA PRASAD AND OTHERS

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This Civil Revision Petition is directed against the order dated 27-8-1957 of the Subordinate Judge, Gudivada whereby he held that the plaint filed by the petitioner fell within the ambit of Section 17 of the Indian Court Fees Act and, therefore, he must pay separate court fee for each of the reliefs claimed. The contention of the learned advocate for the petitioner is that the reliefs sought are alternative in character and they have been claimed on the grounds of breach of contract, therefore, no separate court fees could validly by leviable for each relief.

(2.) In order to appreciate this contention it is appropriate to set out the relevant allegations in the plaint and the reliefs sought for and they are to the effect that the 1st defendant, as manager of the Hindu joint family consisting of himself and defendants 2 and 3, was indebted to the plaintiff for a sum of Rs. 9873/- on the basis of the two promissory notes respectively dated 15-6-1948 and 15-3-49 and for the price of gunny bags purchased about a year prior to 17-10-1949. On the latter date the first defendant executed an agreement for sale of A and B Scheduled properties on behalf of himself and other members of the family in consideration of the debts due to the plaintiff on certain stipulations mentioned therein. The plaintiff's case was that though he was ever ready and willing to perform his part of the contract, the first defendant failed to perform his part of the contract in not fulfilling the stipulations contained in the agreement and on that account the agreement became impossible of performance and consequently void. In para 13 of the plaint, the plaintiff stated that:

(3.) Then having consolidated the amounts due with interest under the promissory notes and the price of gunny bags at Rs. 14,751-8-0 the plaintiff paid a court fee of Rs. 937-7-0 and stated that the value of the alternative reliefs and court fee payable thereon was the same. In the prayer clause he requested the court to decree as per the main relief the suit amount with costs and subsequent interest on both; or decree the said amount as the alternative relief claimed.