( 1 ) THIS is a reference made by a learned single Judge of this Court to answer the following questions by a Division Bench :1) Whether additional documents throwing light by way of subsequent events can be brought on record in a Second Appeal, and if so what is the scope and ambit and the applicability of Order 41, Rule 27 r/w. Section 151 of the Code of Civil Procedure in such a case?2) Whether the view expressed by the Division Bench of this Court in Anisetti bhagyavathi v. Andaluri Satyanarayana and others, AIR 1992 Andh Pra 304 : 1992 (1) alt 455 can be extended to cases of bringing subsequent events to the notice of the high Court in Second Appeals?"

( 2 ) AN application covered by C. M. P. No. 24429 of 2002 in S. A. No. 500 of 1995 was filed under O. 41, R. 27 read with S. 151 of the Code of Civil Procedure to receive additional documents which throw light on subsequent events in a second appeal. The learned single Judge entertained a doubt whether a Judgment of a Division Bench of this Court in Anisetti Bhagyavathi s case (supra) can be applied to cases of bringing subsequent events to the notice of the Court in a second appeal. Since the learned Judge felt that the matter is of general importance, referred the matter to invite a decision of a division Bench.

( 3 ) IN the light of the questions raised by the learned Single Judge, we wish to answer the reference by making a survey of the relevant provisions of law and the legal position relating to this issue.

( 4 ) ORDER 41, Rule 27, C. P. C. deals with the production of additional evidence in appellate Court and it reads as follows : "order 41. Rule 27. Production of additional evidence in Appellate Court:- (1) The parties to an appeal shall not be entitled to produce additional evidence, whether oral or documentary, in the Appellate Court, But if - (a) the Court from whose decree the appeal is preferred has refused to admit evidence which ought to have been admitted, or (aa) the party seeking to produce additional evidence, establishes that notwithstanding the exercise of due diligence, such evidence was not within his knowledge or could not, after the exercise of due diligence, be produced by him at the time when the decree appealed against was passed, or (b) the appellate Court requires any document to be produced or any witness to be examined to enable it to pronounce judgment, or for any other substantial cause, the Appellate Court may allow such evidence or document to be produced, or witness to be examined. (2) Wherever additional evidence is allowed to be produced by an Appellate Court, the Court shall record the reason for its admission. " under this Rule, additional evidence, by way of producing documents or examining witnesses, can be allowed by the appellate court by recording the reasons for admission, when the trial Court refused to admit the evidence which ought to have been admitted, when the party seeking to produce additional evidence had no knowledge about the existence of such document or evidence despite exercising of due diligence, when the appellate Court requires any document to be produced or any witness to be examined to enable it to pronounce Judgment or for any other substantial cause. The general principle of this Rule is that the appellate Court should not travel outside the record of the lower Court and should not take any evidence in appeal. But in the circumstances enumerated above, the appellate court may receive additional evidence by recording its reasons. The discretion given to the appellate Court to receive additional evidence under Rule 27 has to be exercised judiciously and the appellate Court shall not exercise its discretion arbitrarily. Additional evidence can be taken only when the conditions and limitations provided in this Rule exist. The appellate Court is not automatically bound under the above Rule to permit additional evidence, therefore, the discretion has to be exercised judiciously and sparingly.