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1953 DIGILAW 65 (MAD)

Chandrabhogi v. Gudappa Bhandary

1953-02-24

SUBBA RAO

body1953
Order.- These are References under section 5 of the Court-Fees Act. O.S.. No. 201 of 1949 was filed on the file of the Court of the Subordinate Judge of South. Kanara for division of the plaint B. Schedule immovable properties and C. Schedule movables into 16536 shares and for allotment to the plaintiff of 851 shares therefrom and to direct the first defendant to account for the income of the family properties realised by him and sale-proceeds of the clay sold by him from items 13 and 14 of the B. Schedule to defendants 99 to 102, and other incidental reliefs. The suit was valued in respect of the relief of partition at a sum of Rs. 100. On 30th July, 1952, the learned Subordinate Judge passed a supplementary preliminary decision whereunder defendants 1, 4 and 8 were directed to render accounts to the family for the sale-proceeds of clay realised by them and they were also made liable to pay the other members of the family their shares of Rs. 21,600 after deducting their own share. Defendants 1, 4 and 8 preferred separate appeals to the High Court. The appeal preferred by the first defendant is S.A. No. 3174 of 1953 and that by defendants 4 and 8 is S.R. No. 1257 of 1953. Both the Memoranda of appeals were stamped on a fixed fee of Rs. 100 under Article 17-B of the II Schedule to the Court-Fees Act. The office took the view that as the appeals were directed against the decree for specific amounts, ad valorem court-fee should be paid. The relevant provisions of the Court-Fees Act read as follows:- Article 17-B, Schedule. II.- Plaint or memorandum of appeal in every suit where it is not possible to estimate at a money value the subject-matter in dispute and which is not otherwise provided for by this Act. When the plaint is presented to or the the memorandum of appeal is against the decree of- A Revenue Court Ten Rupees A District Munsiff’s Court or the City Civil Court Fifteen Rupees A District Court or Sub-Court One hundred rupees Section 7(iv)(f) for accounts According to the amount at which the relief sought for is valued in the plaint or memorandum of appeal. Article 1, Schedule I.- Plaint or written statement, pleading, a set off or counter-claim or memorandum of appeal (not otherwise provided for in this Act) presented to any Civil or Revenue Court except those mentioned in S.3. When such amount or value exceeds one thousand rupees for every one hundred rupees or part thereof, in excess of one thousand rupees up to five thousand rupees. Seven rupees, eight annas When such amount or value exceeds five thousand rupees, for every two hundred and fifty rupees or part thereof in excess of five thousand rupees, up to ten thousand rupees. Fifteen rupees. It is settled law that a relief for partition is not capable of valuation and therefore Article 17-B of Schedule II will apply. It is equally well-established that a relief for accounting is governed by section 7(iv)(f). It has also been held that in a suit for rendition of accounts, when the amount is ascertained and a decree granted for a specific amount the defendant should pay ad valorem court-fee in an appeal against that decree. If a relief for partition and a relief for accounting are two-distinct subject-matters they should be separately valued, even though the two reliefs are clubbed together in the same suit. But if the relief for accounting is implied in the relief of partition, it cannot be said that the former relief is in respect of a different subject-matter. In that case, though it is framed as a separate relief,, in effect and in substance it will be part of the same relief. It is therefore necessary to ascertain the scope of a relief for accounting in a suit for partition. In Parameshwar Dube v. Gobind Dube1, Fletcher, J., after considering the case-law on the subject summarised his view as follows at page 465: "The result of these authorities I think is that in an ordinary suit for partition in the absence of fraud or other improper conduct, the only account the karta is liable for is as to the existing state ol the the property divisible. The parties have no right to look back and claim relief against past inequality of enjoyment of the members or other matters." Jwala Prasad, J., in Jyotibati Choudhurain v. Lakshmeshwar Prasad Chaudhury2, stated the law thus: "Now such a karta is not responsible to the other members of the family for the management of the joint family property in respect of the income derived therefrom and the expenditure incurred by him. He is the sole master of the situation and is not in any way controlled by the jumor members of the family. He has to use his own discretion unfettered in any way, and controlled only by nis own sense of right or wrong. He is neither a trustee nor an agent and is not accountable to the members of the family. If any member happens to be dissatisfied with him, his remedy is to separate from the family and to ask for a partition. He is entitled to his share in the family properties, movable and immovable, including cash, that may be in existence at the time of partition. He cannot ask for an account of a preceding period, except for the purpose of determining the properties including cash in the hands of the karta so as to be available for partition." Later on the learned Judge proceeded to state: "He can be asked not to render an account as an agent on be half of the other members, but only to disclose the properties including cash in his hands and that might necessitate looking into the accounts. A disclosure of property is not rendition of account, the word account in a suit tor partition and accounts against a karta being used for convenience sake, and not in the legal sense to bring it within the expression used in section 7(iv)(f) of the Court-Fees Act. Section 7(iv)(f) applies to a suit for account. The test is: ‘Can a junior member, without claiming partition, bring a suit for accounts against a Karka?’ If he eannot, then the relief" as to accounts becomes subsidiary to the principal relief of partition" I accept the aforesaid observations as a full statement of the law on the subject. Section 7(iv)(f) applies to a suit for account. The test is: ‘Can a junior member, without claiming partition, bring a suit for accounts against a Karka?’ If he eannot, then the relief" as to accounts becomes subsidiary to the principal relief of partition" I accept the aforesaid observations as a full statement of the law on the subject. It will be seen from the said two judgments that in a partition suit a relief for accounts may be asked for under two circumstances: (1) for the purpose of ascertaining the partible assets of the family and (2) for directing the manager to render accounts on the ground of fraud or improper conduct. Though the terminology used is similar in both the cases, in substance the reliefs are essentially different in content. In the former, the relief of accounting is incidental and subsidiary to the relief of partition as the accounting is only for the purpose of ascertaining the assets, in the latter case, the relief for the rendition of accounts is a distinct and separate matter and it is an accident that it is clubbed along with the relief for partition in the same suit. Bearing the aforesaid principles in mind, I shall now proceed to consider the cases cited. In Ramaswami v. Rangachariar3, a Full Bench of this Court laid down the mode of valuation of the reliefs in a suit for partition. There a Hindu minor sued through his mother as next friend for partition of the properties of the joint family consisting of himself, his father and his three brothers and for possession of his one-fifth share therein. He also joined as defendants several other persons (strangers to the family) either as alienees of family properties or as creditors of the family. His prayers were for: (i) an account of the movable and immovable joint family properties, (ii) the partition by metes and bounds of his one-fifth share, (iii) the appointment of a receiver to manage the properties and collect rents and income till the disposal of the suit, (iv) the costs of the suit, and (v) such further and necessary reliefs as in the circumstances might be considered necessary and proper. The learned Judge held that the relief for partition should be valued under Article 17-B, Schedule II of the Act. The learned Judge held that the relief for partition should be valued under Article 17-B, Schedule II of the Act. In respect of the alienations sought to be set aside and for possession of the properties alienated they directed that those reliefs should be valued under section 7(v) of the Act. In respect of the setting aside of decrees passed against the plaintiff in suits in which he had been eo nomine impleaded as a party, section 7(iv-A) of the Act was held to be applicable. In regard to the other transactions of his father impugned by the plaintiff it was held that no court-fee was necessary. The reason given was that a relief for declaration or cancellation of those transactions was incidental to the relief of partition. The aforesaid judgment therefore is an authority for the position that in a suit for partition, if a relief relates to a distinct subject-matter it should be separately valued, and in a case where a relief is only incidental to the relief of partition, no separate court-fee need be paid. Mack, J., in Pervadhannulu v. Parvadannulu1, appears to lay down a different principle. There a grandson filed a suit against the grand-father for a partition of the joint family property and for rendition of the accounts. The Court directed the defendant to pay a sum of Rs. 20,000 on an account being taken of the outstandings due. In an appeal to the District Court he sought to value it under Article 17-B of the II Schedule of the Court-Fees Act. The learned Judge held, following the Full Bench decision in Danukodi Nayakar In re:2 that the defendant should pay ad valorem court-fee on the subject-matter of the appeal. The learned Judge said: “I am unable to see how for fiscal purposes the liability of a manager of a Hindu joint family business to account to other members of the joint family can be differentiated from an ordinary suit for account as between partners. The simple principle of valuation is contained in Article I, Schedule I of the Court-fees Act. In a plaint or memorandum of appeal court-fee is payable on the amount or value of the subject-matter in dispute.” The facts are not clear. It is not known on what basis the rendition of accounts was asked for in that suit. The simple principle of valuation is contained in Article I, Schedule I of the Court-fees Act. In a plaint or memorandum of appeal court-fee is payable on the amount or value of the subject-matter in dispute.” The facts are not clear. It is not known on what basis the rendition of accounts was asked for in that suit. If it was a distinct relief on the ground of fraud or improper conduct of the grand-father I respectfully agree with the conclusion arrived at by the learned Judge; but if the relief claimed was only incidental to the relief of partition, for the purpose of ascertaining the assets of the family, I regret my inability to accept the correctness of the decision. But Krishnaswami Nayudu, J., in Veluchami Pillai v. Sankaralingam Pillai3, srtikes a different note. In that case the plaintiff, a member of the joint Hindu family, instituted the suit for partition claiming a one-fourth share in the properties and paid a court-fee of Rs. 100 under Article 17-B of Schedule II of the Court-Fees Act. The final decree provided that the plaintiff should receive a certain amount from the other parties to equalise the shares and he was also granted a decree for a specific amount in respect of his share of the profits. The plaintiff preferred an appeal and paid a court-fee of Rs. 100 provided under Article 17-B of Schedule II. The learned Judge held that the decree for owelty and a share of the profits are incidents in a suit for partition and therefore the court-fee paid on the relief for partition was sufficient. To the same effect is the judgment of Chandra Reddi, J., in Kamalam v. Saradambal4. There the plaintiff brought an administration suit against her mother and her three sisters for partition of the plaint schedule property into four shares for delivery of separate possession of her share and for rendition of accounts of other assets and income from the family property. A court-fee of Rs. 10 was paid under Article 17-B of the Schedule II of the Court-Fees Act. A preliminary decree was made. The Commissioner appointed after looking into the accounts found that the second defendant who was virtually in management of the estate was liable to pay the plaintiff Rs. 3,152-8-9. The second defendant filed an appeal against that judgment. 10 was paid under Article 17-B of the Schedule II of the Court-Fees Act. A preliminary decree was made. The Commissioner appointed after looking into the accounts found that the second defendant who was virtually in management of the estate was liable to pay the plaintiff Rs. 3,152-8-9. The second defendant filed an appeal against that judgment. The question was whether ad valorem court-fee should be paid on that amount or whether the court-fee of Rs.100 under Article 17-B of the Schedule II of the Court-Fees Act would be the correct court-fee. The learned Judge held that only the fixed fee of Rs.100 was payable. The learned Judge also accepted the principle that the accounting was only incidental to the relief of partition. I shall now proceed to consider the cases of the other High Courts. In Jyoti Prasad Singha Deo v. Jogendra Ram Ray1, Miller, J., held that in an appeal against a final decree awarding costs, only a fixed fee is payable under Article 17-B of Schedule II of the Court-Fees Act. To support his conclusion the learned Judge put the following illustration at page 191: “Suppose in a partition suit a sum of money has been awarded to one of the parties as owelty money and the party against whom the payment of the owelty money has been directed is aggrieved by such a decree, then he is entitled to prefer an appeal to this Court; and it can hardly be said in such a case although the matter arises in a partition suit the Court-fees leviable would be the amount of the owelty money which forms the subject-matter of the complaint in the appeal.” This decision also is in accordance with the view expressed by the learned judges of this Court. Where the object of the appeal is to attack various items allowed or disallowed in the final decree, Broadway and Martineau, JJ., held in Majidullah Khan v. Hamidullah Khan,2 that ad valorem court-fee should be paid on the amounts entered in the various grounds of appeal. In Sukha Nand v. Shiv Devi3 the same High Court held that ad valorem court-fee should be paid on the sum claimed in appeal. In Sukha Nand v. Shiv Devi3 the same High Court held that ad valorem court-fee should be paid on the sum claimed in appeal. In Ram Prasad v. Krishnanand Singh4 it was held that where the appellants sought to lessen the amount of charge on the properties which they claimed on partition they had to pay ad valorem court-fees on the amount for which they sought to secure liability. The aforesaid three judgments certainly support the contrary view. But with great respect to the learned Judge I cannot accept that view as they did not consider the question whether the relief for the recovery of amounts was incidental to the general relief of partition. From the aforesaid discussion of the case-law the following principles emerge: (1) The court-fee payable for a relief of partition in a suit as well as in the appeal is only the fixed court-fee payable under Article 17-B, Schedule II of the Court-Fees Act. (2) If the relief of accounting or any other relief is an inherent part of the main relief of partition and implied therein, it is not necessary to value that relief separately. The Court-fee paid on the relief for partition would cover the other relief also. In such a case, if the relief claimed in appeal is only that implied in the main relief for partition, the fixed court-fee under Article 17-B of Schedule II will suffice. (3) But if the relief for rendition of accounts relates to a different subject-matter such as a relief for accounting against a manager of joint Hindu family on the ground of fraud or improper conduct, a separate court-fee had to be paid both in the suit as well as in the appeal. In such cases the principle of the Full Bench decision in Danukodi Nayakar, In re:5 will apply and ad valorem court-fee is payable in appeal on the amount decreed. In the instant case the appeals relate only to the sum of Rs. 21,600 representing the share of the other members in the sale-proceeds of the clay realised by the appellants. That amount, therefore, only represents the value of the respondent’s share in one of the assets of the family. Looking into the accounts by the Commissioner or the Court for ascertaining the value of that asset is incidental to the relief of partition and is implied therein. That amount, therefore, only represents the value of the respondent’s share in one of the assets of the family. Looking into the accounts by the Commissioner or the Court for ascertaining the value of that asset is incidental to the relief of partition and is implied therein. I therefore hold that the appellants have correctly valued their relief in the appeals by paying the fixed fee of Rs. 100 under Article 17-B, Schedule II of the Court-Fees Act. R.M. ----- References answered.