Judgment

S. K. DAS, J. : This is an appeal on a certificate granted by the erstwhile Judicial Commissioner of Vindhya Pradesh, which is now part of the State of Madhya Pradesh. On behalf of respondent no. 1, Nagar Mal, who was defendant no.1 in the suit, a preliminary objection has been taken to the effect that the suit was not maintainable by reason of the provisions of S. 4 of the Rewa State Companies Act, 1935 and the appeal filed by the plaintiffs must, therefore, be dismissed. As this preliminary objection was not taken in any of the two courts below, learned counsel for the appellants wanted time to consider the point. Accordingly, on October 28, 1958 we adjourned the hearing of the appeal for about a month. The appeal was then heard on November 27, 1958.

2. As we are of the opinion that the Preliminary objection must succeed, it is necessary to state the facts only in so far as they have a bearing on it. When cloth control came into force in Rewa State, the cloth dealers of Budhar a town in that State, formed themselves into an Association to collect the quota of cloth to be allotted to them and sell it on profit wholesale and retail. The Association at Budhar consisted of 25