V N KRISHNA AIYAR Vs. VNSUBBARAMA AIYAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The appellant before us is the youngest of the three brothers of an undivided Hindu family, the eldest being the first respondent, and the other brother being the second respondent. The family had a cloth trade at Palghat, and another business at Mysore and Bangalore relating to mining leases, etc. The family possessed immoveable properties in Malabar, in Bangalore and in Travancore. Disputes having arisen between the brothers, they executed an agreement in favour of three persons to settle as arbitrators the matter of partition of all the joint family properties including the businesses at Palghat and Bangalore. On the allegation that the arbitrators passed the award--Exhibit C--dividing the. immoveable properties among the brothers in the way they thought fit and also deciding how the business should be disposed of and fixing the liability of the parties to each other in various respects, the two respondents filed an application in the Court of the Subordinate Judge of Palghat under paragraph 20 of the 2nd Schedule of the Civil P. C. praying that "the award may be filed in Court and a decree passed in terms thereof." The appellant, who was made the respondent to the said petition, raised various objections to the filing of the award, one of the objections being that the Lower Court had no jurisdiction to entertain the application as the whole of the subject-matter of the award was not within the jurisdiction of the Lower Court paragraph 14 (w) of the defendant's statement of objections filed in the Lower Court. The Lower Court overruled that objection, and, finding that the objections raised by the appellant on the merits had not been made good, directed the award to be filed in Court and a decree drawn up, remarking at the same time, "but there will be no directions in the decree as regards the immoveable properties situated in Parur (Travancore) and Bangalore." The decree as drafted however contained the provision in paragraph 9 that The plaintiffs be at liberty to institute proper proceedings in Court having jurisdiction over the properties situated in Mysore and Travancore States based on this judgment and to obtain reliefs as provided for in the award,

(2.) In this appeal, the appellant reiterated his objection as regards jurisdiction of the Lower Court to entertain the application under paragraph 20 of Schedule II of the Code of Civil Procedure, and also complained against the decision of the learned Subordinate Judge on the merits. The objection as to the jurisdiction, since it goes to the root of the whole proceedings, has first to be considered. The arbitrators awarded the house properties in Bangalore to the 1 respondent, and the immoveable properties in Travancore to the 1 and the 2nd respondents jointly. The other immoveable properties in Malabar were allot-ted some to the 1 respondent, some to the 2nd respondent, and some to the appellant. We need not here give details of the mode in which the business at Palghat and Bangalore was dealt with by the arbitrators.

(3.) The application to the Lower Court was made under paragraph 20 of Schedule II of the Civil P. C.. Sub-clause (1) of the said paragraph enacts as follows: Where any matter has been referred to arbitration without the intervention of a Court and an award has been made thereon, any person interested in the award may apply to any Court having jurisdiction over the subject-matter of the award that the award be filed in Court.