SHANKARLAL PODDAR Vs. GOBINDA PROSAD LATH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This appeal is against an order of P.B. Mukharji, J., directing the acceptance of a bid of Rs. 2,25,000/- and the sale of lot No. 1 of certain properties to Banshidhar Shankarlal and approving and confirming the same and a consequential order giving the Liquidators who had conducted the sale liberty to draw their remuneration out of the deposit of the purchase price after passing their accounts and certain other consequential orders, which need not be detailed. It appears that on 8-9-1956, a sale was held at the office of Gobinda Prosad Lath and Shashi Bhusan Tewari, Joint Receivers and Liquidators, of the property consisting of machinery and other goods. The sale started at about 2 p.m.--the opening bid being the sum of Rs. 1,50,000/-. The successive bids were Rs. 2,00,000/-, Rs. 2,05,000/-, Rs. 2,10,000/-, Rs. 2,25,000/-, Rs. 2,30,000/-, Rs. 2,40,000/-. Rs. 2,50,000/-, Rs. 2,55,000/-, Rs. 2,60,000/-Rs. 2,65,000/-, Rs. 2,70,000/-, Rs. 2,75,000/-, Rs. 2,80,000/-, Rs. 2,85,000/-, Rs. 2,90,000/- and then--after the parties had been allowed, to advance the bid even by two thousand rupees--were Rs. 2,92,000/-, Rs. 2,94,000/-, Rs. 2,96,000/-, Rs. 2,98,000/-, Rs. 3,00,000/-, Rs. 3,05,000/-, Rs. 3,07,000/-, Rs. 3,09,000/-, Rs. 3,11,000/-, Rs. 3,13,000/-, Rs. 3.15,000/-, Rs. 3,17,000/-, Rs. 3,19,000/-, Rs. 3,21,000/-, Rs. 3,25,000/-, Rs. 3,27,000/-, Rs. 3,30,000/-, Rs. 3,32,000/-, Rs. 3,35,000/- and Rs. 3,37,000/-. The highest bid of Rs. 3,37,000/- was by Nandlal Agarwalla. As no further bid was offered, Nandlal Agarwalla was declared the highest bidder and was asked to put in immediately 25 per cent. of the amount bid. Nandlal left the place. But after waiting about 20 minutes, the Liquidators treated his omission to pay by that time as a default and put the property up for sale again. This time the highest bid was only Rs. 2,25,000/-, of Banshidhar Shankarlal It is worth mentioning that at the previous sale which was infructuous, because Nandlal Agarwalla did not put in the deposit, the competition at the later stage was between Banshidhar Shankar Lal and Nandram Agarwalla. But apart from them, there was one S.K. Chakraborty whose bid at the previous sale was up to Rs. 2,98,000/-. S.K. Chakra borty took part in the later sale also, but gave only one bid of Rs. 2,00,000/-. Several other persons who had at the previous sale bid well over Rs. 2,25,000/- appear to have taken no part in the bidding at the later sale.

(2.) The main contention which was raised on behalf of the creditor Shankarial Poddar--on whose prayer, it may be mentioned, the company had been wound-up and Liquidators appointed--in opposing the Liquidators' prayer that the bid of Rs. 2,25,000/- by Banshidhar Shankarial be accepted and the sale to him confirmed, was that there was undue haste in holding the sale again that very day, specially when many of the persons, who had taken part in the earlier sale, had already left. As already stated, the learned Judge has made an order approving the sale and directing the acceptance of the bid of Rs. 2,25,000/- by Banshidhar Shankarial.

(3.) It is against that order, that this present appeal has been preferred.