L PARMESHWARI DAS Vs. MUNICIPAL BOARD

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The facts of the casa which have given rise to this appeal occupy a very narrow orbit and may be set out briefly. The name of L. Parmeshwari Das appears to have been recorded on the electoral roll of Ward No. 9 of the Municipal Board of Bareilly. L. Girdhari Lal, defendant 2, applied to the District Magistrate of Bareilly for removal of the name of Parmeshwari Das from the electoral roll upon the ground that he was an undischarged insolvent. He was evidently moved to do so under the authority contained in Section 14(3)(d), U.P. Municipalities Act (Act 2 of 1916). The learned District Magistrate removed the name of Parmeshwari Das from the roll by his order dated 30 November 1925. Hence this suit for a declaration that Parmeshwari Das was a qualified voter, that he was not an undischarged bankrupt and that his name was properly entered in the electoral roll of the Bareilly Municipality.

(2.) The suit was resisted principally on the ground that the plaintiff was, as a matter of fact, an undischarged insolvent and that his name had been properly removed from the roll. This plea was repelled by the Court of first instance, which decreed the suit. The lower appellate Court took a contrary view, reversed the decision of the trial Court and dismissed the suit. Hence this appeal.

(3.) We are clearly of opinion that the view taken by the lower appellate Court was unsound. In 1904 L. Parmeshwari Das applied to the learned District Judge of Bareilly to be declared an insolvent. He was adjudicated an insolvent by an order, dated 3 February 1905. The learned District Judge wound up his order with the following observation: "I grant the application and discharge the insolvent." It is contended that L. Parmeshwari Das was a discharged insolvent by force of the order referred to above.