PUINBASI MAJHIANI Vs. SHIBA BHUE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) IN this reference made by the Registrar the question is whether the court-fee on a memorandum of appeal from an order refusing to grant probate of a will in R. S. 15 of 1963 on the file of the Subordinate Judge, Bolangir, is payable under Article 11 or Article 17-A of schedule II of the Court Fees Act. The appellant has valued the appeal for the purpose of jurisdiction at Rs. 5,000 but paid court-fee of Rs. 6/- treating it as an appeal against an order under Article 11. The Stamp Reporter pointed out that the appeal is from a decree and the Court fee is Rs. 150/- as payable under Article 17-A and that accordingly the deficit of Rs. 144/- is realisable from the appellant. The appellant contested the stamp report before the Registrar stating that the order appealed against is not a decree and that the court-fee payable is not under Article 17-A.

(2.) HAVING regard to the position that the matter has assumed some general importance for the reasons stated by the Registrar he referred the matter to me as Taxing Judge for a decision on the point.