HARIPRASAD JAISWAL Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS is a defendant's appeal against the reversing decree of the lower appeal court whereby, in an action for deceit, a decree for Rs. 540/- was passed against him.

(2.) THE broad facts of this case are no longer in dispute. Two money-orders, one for Rs. 375/-addressed to Badriprasad Shukla and another for Rs. 165/- addressed to Ramashanker Agarwal, both care of Hariprasad Jaiswal, proprietor Hindusthan restaurant, Katni, were received by post on 8th May 1951 in the post office at katni. On the same day, in the usual course, postman Pyarelal (P. W. 4) made payments of the two sums to two persons who were staying in the hotel of the defendant (Hariprasad ). In both cases, the defendant not only attested the signatures of the two payees, but also himself wrote their addresses on the money-order coupons under the printed matter appearing thereon as given below: "the payment has been made in my presence to the payee who is personally known to me and whose permanent address is. . . . . . . . . . . . . "

(3.) THE plaintiff's case, was that the two money orders were faked ones and that, in fact, the two sums were not paid at the Ridge Sub Post Office, Jabalpur, which purported to be the office of issue. Also, the two persons, whose addresses were given by the defendant, were not traceable. Since the payees were neither permanent residents of Katni nor known to the postal authorities at that station, in the usual course enquiries were made from the defendant who not only produced the two persons claiming to be entitled to payment but also assured the postman, pyarelal (P. W. 4), about their identity and recorded the permanent addresses of the two persons as personally known to him. By falsely identifying the two persons as personally known to him and by giving their false addresses, the defendant induced the postman, Pyarelal (P. W. 4) to deliver the two sums to the persons produced by him. He was. therefore, liable to make good the loss suffered by the plaintiff.