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1988 Supreme(Kar) 452

Karnataka High Court
Judges : Chandrakantaraj Urs
B.S.SURESH - Appellant
Versus
B.S.JAGADISH - Respondent
C. R. P. 985 Of 1988
Decided On : 10/06/1988

The valuation for jurisdiction and relief can be different, and the Court should accept the valuation as set out in the plaint in suits for accounts.

Headnote:

Court Fee - Valuation of Suit - Section 115 of the Code of Civil Procedure - Section 33 of the Court Fee Act - Section 26 of C. F. Act - Section 50 of the Karnataka Court Fees and Suits Valuation Act

Fact of the Case:

The petitioners filed a suit against the respondents for rendering accounts of income from coffee estates and for injunctions. The office objected to the suit valuation, and the Civil Judge directed the petitioners to pay court fee on a proper estimate, finding their valuation inadequate.

Finding of the Court:

The Court found that the lower Court misdirected itself in holding that the plaintiffs could not give two valuations separately and that the direction for market value of properties was not tenable. The Court upheld the tentative valuation and criticized the lower Court's finding on the valuation of immovable property.

Issues: Dispute over the valuation of the suit for court fee and jurisdiction purposes.

Ratio Decidendi: The Court cited the case of COMMERCIAL AVIATION AND TRAVEL COMPANY AND ORS. v. Mrs. VIMLA pannalal to support the acceptance of tentative valuation in suits for accounts. It emphasized that the valuation for jurisdiction and relief can be different, and the Court should accept the valuation as set out in the plaint.

Final Decision: The revision was allowed, and the lower Court's order was set aside. The trial Court was directed to proceed with the suit based on the observations made.

CHANDRAKANTARAJ URS, J.

( 1 ) THIS matter has come up for admission after notice.

( 2 ) THIS is a revision petition filed under Section 115 of the Code of Civil Procedure against the order dated 3-2-1988 made by the Civil Judge, Chickmagalur, in Original Suit No.-- of 1988. The order came to be passed on the office objection that the suit was not properly valued.

( 3 ) THE petitioners - plaintiffs filed suit against the respondents - defendants for rendering accounts in respect of the income from three bits of coffee estates left in the management of the defendants for convenience having obtained the said coffee estates to their share under a registered partition deed. The petitioners have stated that the value of the suit for the purpose of court fee and jurisdiction was as given in the valuation slip enclosed alongwith the plaint. In the valuation slip, the following is stated: "the suit is for rendition of accounts of the income in the suit land payable to plaintiffs and for a decree on the sums found due. The plaintiffs tentatively estimate the amount at Rs. 8,500/- and has paid Court fee of Rs. 850/-thereon. The plaintiffs undertake to pay the Court fee on the actual amount found due after determination of the amount by Court as per Section 33 of the court Fee Act. The suit is also for the grant of injunction, restraining the defendants from obstructing the plaintiffs from the use of the common facilities. The plaintiffs have valued the relief at Rs. 1000/-and paid Court fee of Rs. 100/- thereon under Section 26 of C. F. Act. The suit is also for grant of injunction against defendants 2 and 3 preventing them from interfering with the activities of plaintiffs at Bangalore. The plaintiffs have valued the suit for Rs. 100/-and paid court fee of Rs. 100/- thereon. A total Court fee of Rs. 1000/- is paid. "

( 4 ) AFTER hearing the learned Counsel for the plaintiffs, the office objection was upheld and the learned Civil Judge directed that Court fee should be paid on a proper estimate made and Rs. 8,500/- estimated was arbitrary and inadequate. He found fault with the petitioners that the value shown of the immovable properties from which income was derived at two lakhs of rupees to be inadequate and he further held that in terms of Section 50 of the Karnataka Court Fees and Suits valuation Act they could not give two valuations, one for the purpose of the reliefs and another for the purpose of jurisdiction.

( 5 ) IN this Court Mr. Setlur, learned Counsel appearing for the petitioners - plaintiffs, has contended that the trial Court completely mis-directed itself in holding that the plaintiffs could not give two valuations separately, one for the purpose of reliefs and another for the purpose of jurisdiction and the direction that the value should be on the basis of the market value of the properties was not tenable in law. It is further contended that Section 50 has not been properly understood by the Court below.

( 6 ) IN this Court Mr. Ramaswamy Iyengar, learned Counsel appearing for the respondents, has contended that the lower Court's order must be sustained having regard to the fact that Rs. 8,500/- is grossly inadequate estimate in order to avoid payment of Court fee having regard to the fact that from 1984-85 the income shown from the lands in question is in excess of Rs. 1,40,000/-and therefore there ought to have been a proper estimate and in any event the estimate made in the valuation slip does not amount to proper pleading, as no such estimate is made in the plaint.

( 7 ) I do not think this Court should countenance the arguments advanced for respondents. In the case of COMMERCIAL AVIATION AND TRAVEL COMPANY AND ORS. v. Mrs. VIMLA pannalal AIR1988 SC 1636 , JT1988 (3 )SC 41 , (1988 )94 plr288 , 1988 (2 )SCALE1 , (1988 ) 3 SCC423 , [1988 ]supp1 SCR431 , 1988 (2 )UJ354 (SC ) it has been ruled that Oridinarily, it is not possible for the Court at a preliminary stage to determine the value of the relief in a suit





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