MEHROTRA, C. J.: This is an appeal by the plaintiff Messrs. Himatsingka Motor Works Ltd. Plaintiff is a limit­ed company having its registered office at Satribari Road, Gauhati. The case of the Plaintiff is that the defendant Sri Haranath Barua used to purchase petrol and motor parts from the plaintiff on credit by opening an account with the plain­tiff's shop. From time to time the defendant made payments. The plaintiff kept an account book maintained in regular course of business and all the receipts and payments made by defendant) were entered in the account book. The defendant had transactions with the plaintiff from the ist November 1951 till the 22nd August 1954 when the account was closed and the outstanding balance of the plaintiff against the defendant on that date was Rs. 6,194-13-6. The defendant has not paid the said amount. On these facts plaintiff has claimed Rs. 6,969/47-. A sum of Rs. 6,194-13-6 is claimed as the principal amount and Rs. 774-6-0 is claimed as interest at the rate of 12 J%. (2) The defendant denied plaintiff's claim. The case of the defendant as set out in the written statement is that he purchased a lorry from the plaintiff on hire-purchase system for use in his coal carrying business on the Shillong-Gauhati road. There was a verbal agreement between the plain­tiff and the defendant under which the plaintiff was to supply petrol on credit for the lorry and allow a rebate at the rate of two annas per gallon for the petrol purchased. The plaintiff also supplied, however, petrol to other lorries plying on the same route on his own responsibility without any authori­ty from the defendant and added the price of the petrol supplied to the other lorries to the bill of the defendant. The rebate was also stopped by the plaintiff. This resulted in some misunderstanding between the plaintiff and the defendant and the petrol supply was stopped. The present suit has been filed with a view to harass the defendant. It is denied that the plaintiff had entered all the receipts in his book. The defendant has further claimed that a sum of Rs. 400/- paid to the plain­tiff by mutual agreement is still lying with Mr. J. N. Bawri of Shillong. (3) The Court below framed the following three issues: 1. It is denied that the plaintiff had entered all the receipts in his book. The defendant has further claimed that a sum of Rs. 400/- paid to the plain­tiff by mutual agreement is still lying with Mr. J. N. Bawri of Shillong. (3) The Court below framed the following three issues: 1. Whether the plaintiff had any authority from the defendant to supply petrol as alleged in the plaint? 2. Whether the plaintiff is liable to pay rebate at the rate of As. 2 per gallon to the defendant? 3.Whether the account submitted by the plain­tiff is correct and what is the actual amount due from the defendant? (4) The trial Court held that the plaintiff has failed to prove the liability of the defendant mainly on the ground that he failed to produce the credit memo book. As to the contention that the plaintiff granted rebate of two annas to the defendant, the Court below has rejected the plea of the defendant. The plaintiff in this appeal has challenged the find­ing of the Court below that the plaintiff has failed to prove the amount due from the defendant and from the account books, according to the plaintiff, it is fully established that the defendant is liable to pay the amount claimed by the plaintiff. (5) The defendant respondent has not challenged the correctness of the account. His case is that the plaintiff has claimed the price of the petrol supplied to other lorries working on that route on their own responsibility. The plaintiff has examin­ed Shri Bhabesh Chandra Mazumdar, Head Ac­countant and Supervisor of petrol and part section of the plaintiff company. According to his state­ment a general ledger is maintained in which there is no entry of personal account with the customer. The general ledger bears the total purchase of petrol and motor parts by the company and also the total sale for that period in the year. The accounts with the customers are maintained in customer's ledgers. For the years in suit the ledger account of the defendant has been filed and is marked Exts. 1 to 3. The account books were kept in the regular course of business. According to this witness the slip book was printed in duplicate form. Whenever petrol was required by the defendant, he used to issue the outer foil of a slip and presented to the plaintiff company. 1 to 3. The account books were kept in the regular course of business. According to this witness the slip book was printed in duplicate form. Whenever petrol was required by the defendant, he used to issue the outer foil of a slip and presented to the plaintiff company. On the receipt of the slip the company supplies the goods and prepares credit memo. The slip is kept attached with the credit memo. Then the account is prepared and the bill is submitted at the end of the month. Along with the bill, the slip and the credit memo are also for­warded to the defendant for payment. A carbon copy of the credit memo is kept in the record of the company. The slip which was supplied to the plaintiff thus was sent along with the credit memo and the bill to the defendant. (6) The defendant has his account books. But he has not produced any account books, nor has he filed the bill sent to him. It is admitted by the defendant that he has been purchasing petrol from the plaintiff on credit. The plaintiff has fur­ther examined Shrj Madhab Chandra Dey the ac­countant of the plaintiff company, who has also proved the accounts of the defendant. (7) Much reliance has been placed by the Court below on the failure of the plaintiff to file the credit memo book. I have already referred to the evi­dence of the head accountant to the effect that there was no credit memo book as such. The credit memo was prepared from the slip and along with the slip and the bill it was sent to the defendant. Only a carbon copy of it was kept in the record of the company. The head accountant has also stated that the credit memo books up to 1956 were destroyed according to some written rule and he has denied the suggestion made by the defendant that it has been purposely withheld as it would show the number of the lorries for which petrol was purchased. (8) Plaintiff's witness No. 3 Bhola Ram Agarwalla has also said that the credit memo book for the period in question was not preserved and that they were destroyed as not necessary. (8) Plaintiff's witness No. 3 Bhola Ram Agarwalla has also said that the credit memo book for the period in question was not preserved and that they were destroyed as not necessary. Much emphasis is laid by the counsel for the respondent on the statement of this witness to the effect that the credit memo books of the suit years were pre­served at the time of getting the plaint drafted and that they were destroyed afterwards. The plain­tiff's witnesses have given an explanation for the non-production of the copy of the credit memo kept with them and in the absence of anything else to cast doubt on the explanation, there is no reason to discard that statement. No adverse inference thus can be drawn from the non-production of the credit memo. As has been disclosed in the state­ment of the plaintiff's witnesses, the slip issued by the customer is sent to the customer along with the credit memo and the bill. As at the instance of the defendant a ledger account was opened and the defendant was purchasing petrol on credit, the 'edger account, unless proved to be wrong, is prima facie the relevant account book for ascertaining the liability of the defendant. (After discussing the evidence (Paras 9-11) the judgment proceeded:) (12) Section 34 of the Indian Evidence Act reads as follows: "Entries in books of account, regularly kept in the course of business, are relevant whenever they refer to a matter into which the Court has to inquire, but such statements shall not alone be sufficient evidence to charge any person with liability." Relying upon this section, Mr. Goswami who appears for the respondent, has argued that the plaintiff will have to produce other evidence in support of the account books. He has further relied upon the cases of 'Sorabjee Vacha Ganda v. Koon-wurjee Manikjee' reported in I Moo Ind App 47 (PC), 'Rai Sri Kishen v. Rai Huri Kishen' reported in 5 Moo Ind App 432 (PC), 'Chandi Ram v. Jamint Kanta, reported in AIR 1952 Assam 92 and 'Ram-kishen v. Vallabh Das', reported in AIR 1958 Raj 255 in support of his contention that the account books by themselves are not sufficient to charge any person with the liability. We have already dealt with the evidence and in our opinion there is sufficient material on the record by which it is established that the defendant was liable to pay the amount claimed by the plaintiff. (13) The plaintiff has claimed a sum of Rs. 774/6/- as the interest on the amount due at the rate of 12 J per cent. The plaintiff has not stated in the plaint that there was an agreement to pay interest at the rate of 12^ per cent, to the plaintiff. In the absence of any contract to that effect the plaintiff cannot get a decree for the in­terest at the rate of 121/2per cent. In the result, therefore, the decree of the Court below is set aside, the plaintiff's suit is decreed for a sum of Rs. 6,194/13/6 with interest at the rate of- six per cent from the 22nd August 1954 when the amount became due, till the 5th October 1955, the date of the suit together with future interest till payment and the appeal is allowed with costs. Appeal allowed.