Judgement

SHAH, J.: Birendra Krishna Ghosh - hereinafter called "Ghosh" - was practising as an attorney-at-law in the High Court of Calcutta. He died in August 1950. H. K. Banerjee - the first respondent herein - commenced in 1951 an action in the High Court of Calcutta on the original side against Swaran Lata and Arun Kumar - widow and minor son respectively of Ghosh - for a decree for Rs. 15,000/- claiming that it was the balance of "capital deposits" due to him from Ghosh and Rs. 1,535/- interest due thereon. The plaintiff claimed that he had deposited with Ghosh Rs. 6,000/- on December 10, 1946, for the "specific purpose of investing the amount" and the latter agreed to pay interest at the rate of 6 per cent per annum and to repay the same or any portion thereof when demanded; that on or about February 17, 1948, he bad deposited Rs. 10,000/- with Ghosh also for "the specific purpose of investing" that sum, and the latter had agreed to pay interest at the rate of 7 per cent per annum and to repay, the same or part thereof when demanded; that under the agreement Ghosh paid diverse sums of money as interest, and on July 3, 1947 Ghosh repaid Rs. 1,000/- out of Rs. 6,000/-/deposited; and that the balance of Rs. 15,000/- and Rs. 1,535,/- interest due thereon were repayable by the defendants to the plaintiff.

2. Swaran Lata filed a written statement denying the claim of the plaintiff. She denied that the sums of Rs. 6,000/-and Rs. 10,000/- were entrusted to or deposited with her husband as alleged by the plaintiff; she denied that her husband repaid any amounts towards interest or part payment of principal; and she submitted that the suit was in any event barred by the law of limitation.

3. The trial of the suit commenced before Law, J., on July 12, 1962. In support of the plaintiff s case four witnesses were examined. The plaintiff tendered in evidence extracts from certain Bank accounts and correspondence. He produced no documentary evidence in support of his case that any amount was deposited with Ghosh, on terms set out in the plaint. Apparently he relied upon the entries in the extracts from the statements of account with the United Bank of India Ltd., the Imperial Bank of India, the Hooghly Bank Ltd. and correspondence between him and Swaran Lata. The learned Judge by order dated August 17, 1962, passed the following order :

"There will be a decree for Rs. 15,000/with interest on judgment on Rs. 15,000/-at 6 per cent per annum and costs. No interim interest allowed." Pursuant to that order a decree was drawn up.

4. Against the decree Swaran Lata appealed to the High Court under Clause 15 of the Letters Patent, and raised several grounds in the memo of appeal on the merits. The High Court disposed of the appeal by a short judgment observing :

"We think that the, plaintiff sufficiently proved the case made in the plaint. On the 10th December, 1946 the plaintiff entrusted and deposited with Birendra Krishna Ghosh a sum of Rs. 6,000/- for the express and specific purpose of investing the sum to yield interest at the rate of 6 per cent per annum. He also entrusted and deposited with Birendra Krishna Ghosh on the 17th February 1948 a sum of Rs. 10,000/- for "the express and specific purpose of investing the sum to yield interest at the rate of 7 per cent per annum.

The Court observed that the amounts paid to Ghosh were deposits, within the meaning of Article 60 of the Indian Limitation Act, 1908, and since interest was paid in respect of both the deposits within three years of the institution of the suit, no question of limitation arose, and the Trial Court had "rightly decreed the suit." The High Court, however, modified the decree passed by the Trial Court and declared that the liability of the defendants was not personal and was limited only to "the assets and properties" of Ghosh received by them. With special leave, Swaran Lata Ghosh has appealed to this Court.

5. The defendants had filed a written statement denying the averments