PAKKIAMUTHU NADAR Vs. RKANAGASABAPATHY CHETTIAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) These are appeals from the judgment and decree of the District Judge, Tinnevelly, in first appeals in 22 summary suits tried by the Honorary Deputy Collector of Tinnevelly under the Estates Land Act. The suits were brought by ryots for commutation of rent under Section 40 of the Act.

(2.) The Deputy Collector has carefully-gone into the relevant facts bearing upon the rent, but in all these suits except four viz., those in S.A. Nos. 630, 640, 642, 647 of 1926, in which no such rent was paid, he has ignored the circumstances that cash or kattukuthagai rents had prevailed between the landholder and ryot for certain periods previous to the suits. He says in his 23 para. that these rents are of recent dates and cannot be taken as a basis. On the other hand the learned District Judge has entirely based his conclusions on calculations founded upon these rents, ignoring the other matters inquired into by the Deputy Collector. Neither of these methods can be commended. The Collector is bound under Section 40 to have due regard to the average value of rent actually accrued due to the landholder during the preceding 10 years. Obviously a very good criterion of the rent actually accrued duo is the money value agreed upon by the parties. To attract the provisions of;S. 40 it is necessary that at the time of suit the ryot is liable to pay in kind, but it is not necessary to assume that for the previous 10 years he has paid in kind, and to make the calculation upon that fictional basis. The fact that in that period he has paid in cash can certainly be taken into consideration. But it is only one fact to be duly considered in relation to other circumstances.

(3.) There is no warrant for the lower appellate Court treating it as the one basic fact, and then not even taking these rents at their face value, but artificially enhancing them with reference to the current prices of paddy. The suits except the four mentioned above must be remanded to the Court of trial for reconsideration of the commutation rates after having due regard to the kattukuthagai proved to have been paid in each case. Costs to abide the result.