ALIMAHOMED RAHIMTULLAH Vs. PANDURANG LAXMAN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This is one of those melancholy disputes between a building contractor and his employer which come before these Courts so frequently. Although the amount in dispute is small, the point at issue is an important one to architects and the persons who employ them.

(2.) On the 12th of March 1914, plaintiff entered into a contract with Pandurang Laxman and Laxman Kashinath with reference to the work of building a house at Chandanwadi in Sonapur Lane. The agreement states that Pandurang Laxman and Laxman Kashinath, defendants in this suit, have got the plans in respect thereof passed by the Municipality through the engineer, Mr. Laxman Harischandra Chowdhari. Defendants had asked for lenders showing the rates for the said work, and out of the same they have accepted the tender of Allimahomed Rahimtulla, the plaintiff. Then it is agreed that the plaintiff s work was to be measured every month by the defendants engineer and on receipt of the engineer s chiti they would pay the amount of the said chiti the next day after keeping 10 per cent. thereof as deposit. And as to the balance that might remain as deposit, when the plaintiff completed the defendants work, defendants would get their engineer to measure the same forthwith and would pay immediately all the moneys due to the plaintiff along with the final bill in full settlement.

(3.) Mr. Chowdhari was, no doubt, the defendants engineer for supervising the work which was being done by the plaintiff, and from time to time he wrote letters to the defendants that the plaintiff s work had been measured up and that so much money might safely be paid to him. On the 7th of June, Mr. Chowdhari wrote: "Herewith please find the final bill of the work done by your contractor, Mr. Allibhai Rahimtulla, of your new building at Shankersett Lane, amounting to Rs. 14,989-5-2."