BAISHNAB CHARAN BAGUDAI Vs. PURI BANK

JUDGEMENT

(1.) FACTS of the case are as follows : On May 24, 1944 Baishnab Charan Bagudai, opposite party No. 1, opened with the Balasore Branch of Puri Bank Ltd. an Overdraft Current Account (Account No. 351). He had a small timber business and as it did not flourish, in May 1945 he closed the business and left Balasore Town. By that time he overdrew the account to the tune of Rs. 1402/9/6. He did not operate the account either by way of withdrawal or deposit for a period of about 1 year 10 months until January 11, 1947. Thereafter he made several deposits till July, 1946, (sic) the total amount deposited being Rs. 2164/7/-. On April 24, 1947 the Bank went into liquidation. The official Liquidator submitted to the High Court a list of debtors under section 45-D (2) of the Banking Companies Act, 1949 (as amended by the Act 52 of 1953) hereinafter to be stated as the Act. Notices under section 45-D (3) of the Act were served on Baishnab Charan Bagudai and Rajani Ballav Bhattacharya who was subsequently added as a party by the Court's order dated February 26, 1960. The Official Liquidator claimed a sum of Rs. 13,209/13/6 with interest upto March 31, 1954. Under Rule 2 framed under section 45-D (2) as given in the Fourth Schedule appended to the Act, the Official Liquidator is required to give description of papers, writing and documents, if any, relating to each debt and in the schedule attached to the notice served on the opposite parties the only document referred to was the over-draft Current Account No. 351. No reference was made to Exs. A and B.

(2.) BAISHNAB Charan Bagudai (opposite party No. 1) filed written statement challenging some entries in the ledger Book of the Puri Bank Limited. Those entries are as follows : 1-6-1945 17-5-1946 24-5-1946 11-12-1946 Amount debited for purchasing timber to R. B. Bhattacharya for B. C. Bagudai Amount debited for purchasing 500 cft. sal wood to Sri R. B. Bhattacharya as his brain is not in good order Amount debited for purchasing 500 cft. sal wood to Sri R. B. Bhattacharya as his brain is not in good order To cash ... Rs. 2154/8/... Rs. 3000/... Rs. 2000/... Rs. 250/Rs. 7404/8. Specific plea was taken that R. B. Bhattacharya had no authority to draw money on the overdraft Account of BAISHNAB. R. B. Bhattacharya was admittedly the Manager and Secretary of the Balasore Branch and he had made those false entries in the Bank account to fasten BAISHNAB with a liability. He prayed that he may be declared as a creditor of the Bank for Rs. 511/13/6 and may be excluded from the list of debtors under section 45-D of the Act.