The Deputy Registrar is competent to issue a certificate under Section 71 of the Chit Funds Act, 1982, and the execution petition was properly filed before the Civil Court as per the procedure outlined in Rule 55 of the Andhra Pradesh Chit Fund Rules, 2008, and Section 71 of the Act.

ORDER :

1. This petition is filed under Article 227 of the Constitution of India to dismiss E.P. No. 53 of 2018 in Dispute No. 213 of 2014 on the file of the Court of Principal Junior Civil Judge, Narasaraopet.

2. Heard Sri M. Janardhan Rao, learned counsel for the petitioners/JDrs 2 and 3 and Sri K.M.R. Bala Prasad, learned counsel representing Sri P. Durga Prasad, learned counsel for R-1/DHr.

3. 1st respondent/DHr filed E.P. No. 53 of 2018 under Order 21, Rule 37 CPC against JDrs 1 to 3 (JDr No. 4 died) for execution of an order dated 24.08.2016 passed by the Deputy Registrar of Chits, Narasaraopet under Section 69 of the Chit Funds Act, 1982 (in short ‘the Act 1982’) based on a Certificate of Transfer of Award dated 17.02.2018 issued by the Deputy Registrar of Chits, Narasaraopet, on an application filed by the DHr under Rule 55(2) and (3) of A.P. Chit Fund Rules, 2008 (in short ‘the Rules, 2008’) to send the award/decree for execution by the Court of Principal Junior Civil Judge, Narasaraopet with a non-satisfaction memo.

4. The learned counsel for the petitioners argued as in the revision petition, mainly classify his objections into two points, viz. (1) that the Deputy Registrar is not competent and the Registrar alone is competent to issue certificate of transfer under Section 71 of the Act as held by the Division Bench of this Court in the case of Punyamuthula Venkata Viswa Sundara Rao and Another vs. M/s Margadarsi Chit Fund Private Limited, 2017 (3) ALT 639 and (2) that the execution petition shall be filed only before the Registrar who in turn has to transfer the same to a Civil Court for execution as per Rule 55 of the Rules, 2008. Therefore, he vehemently contended that the execution petition in E.P. No. 53 of 2018 is liable to be dismissed.

5. The learned counsel for the 1st respondent submitted that in a subsequent case between Madamanchi Anil Kumar vs. Margadarshi Chit Fund Private Limited, C.R.P. No. 2338 of 2018, dated 05.11.2018 the Division Bench of the same High Court, by distinguishing the decision in the case of Punyamuthula Venkata Viswa Sundara Rao (supra), held that the Deputy Registrar is also competent to discharge all the functions of a Registrar under the Act as per the definition under Section 2(o) of the Act, 1982 and also by virtue of the G.O. issued vide G.O.Ms. No. 1472 Revenue Registration II dated 10.12.2008 under Section 61(1) of the Act, 1982 and therefore the certificate issued by the Deputy Registrar in the present case is in accordance with law. He further submitted that the 1st respondent filed an application in I.A. No. 43 of 2018 in ACP No. 213 of 2014 dated 09.02.2018 before the Deputy Registrar as required under Section 71 r/w Rule 55 CPC and therefore the certificate was issued and thus there is no illegality in filing the execution petition by the 1st respondent before the Civil Court.

6. In reply, the learned counsel for the petitioners submitted that the decision of the subsequent Division Bench in the case of Madamanchi Anil Kumar (supra) was passed contrary to the earlier view of the Division Bench and therefore the matter needs to be referred to a larger Bench and the subsequent decision cannot be followed by this Single Bench.

7. Now the points that would arise for consideration are:

(1) Whether a Deputy Registrar also is competent to issue certificate under Section 71 of the Act, 1982?

(2) Whether the 1st respondent/DHr has properly complied Rule 55 of the Rules, 2008 and Section 71 of the Act, 1982 to file the execution petition in E.P. No. 53 of 2018 before a Civil Court?

8. POINT No. 1:

Section 71 of the Act, 1982 reads as follows:

71. Money how recovered: Every order passed by the Registrar or the nominee under Section 68 or Section 69 and every order passed by the State Government in appeal under Section 71 for payment of any money shall, if not carried out:

After going through the decisions of both Division Benches of this High Court, this Court is of the opinion that the questi