1983 Supreme(Bom) 146
IN THE HIGH COURT OF BOMBAY
(NAGPUR BENCH)
Ginwala A.A., J.
Pundlik Balkrishna Patil others.... Applicants.
Versus
Arun Shankar Patil others.... Non-applicants.
Civil Revision Application No. 670 of 1982, decided on 14-6-1983.
Advocates appeared :
V.M. Kulkarni, for applicants.
R.L. Khapre, for non-applicant No. 3.
The jurisdiction of the Civil Court is not barred by the provisions of the Mamlatdar's Courts Act, 1906 or the Maharashtra Land Revenue Code, 1966 and the decisions of the authorities concerned under these two Acts are not meant to be conclusive but rather subject to the decision of the Civil Court.
Headnote:
CIVIL PROCEDURE CODE, 1908 - SECTION 115(2) - REVISION - APPEALABLE ORDER - ORDER OF APPELLATE COURT - NOT APPEALABLE - REVISION APPLICATION MAINTAINABLE - MAMLATDAR'S COURTS ACT, 1906 - SECTION 5 - MAHARASHTRA LAND REVENUE CODE, 1966 - SECTION 143 - JURISDICTION OF CIVIL COURT - NOT BARRED - SUMMARY REMEDIES - DECISIONS OF AUTHORITIES NOT CONCLUSIVE - APPRECIATION OF EVIDENCE - REVISIONAL COURT CANNOT INTERFERE - JURISDICTIONAL ERROR.
Fact of the Case:
Plaintiffs filed a suit for declaration of right of way to approach their field through the field belonging to the defendants and for a permanent injunction restraining them from obstructing this way. An application for temporary injunction pending the suit was filed which was allowed by the trial Court. The defendants filed an appeal against the order of the trial Court which was dismissed by the Appellate Court.
Finding of the Court:
The revision application filed against the order of the Appellate Court was maintainable as the order was not appealable. The jurisdiction of the Civil Court was not barred by the provisions of the Mamlatdar's Courts Act, 1906 or the Maharashtra Land Revenue Code, 1966. The decisions of the authorities concerned under these two Acts were not meant to be conclusive but rather subject to the decision of the Civil Court. The revisional Court could not interfere with the finding of fact of the courts below unless the error went to the jurisdiction of the Court.
Issues: Whether the revision application was maintainable against the order of the Appellate Court. Whether the jurisdiction of the Civil Court was barred by the provisions of the Mamlatdar's Courts Act, 1906 or the Maharashtra Land Revenue Code, 1966. Whether the revisional Court could interfere with the finding of fact of the courts below.
Ratio Decidendi: The revision application was maintainable as the order of the Appellate Court was not appealable. The jurisdiction of the Civil Court was not barred by the provisions of the Mamlatdar's Courts Act, 1906 or the Maharashtra Land Revenue Code, 1966 as these provisions were meant to serve as summary remedies for providing expeditious relief, to the aggrieved party and the decisions of the authorities concerned under these two Acts were not meant to be conclusive but rather subject to the decision of the Civil Court. The revisional Court could not interfere with the finding of fact of the courts below unless the error went to the jurisdiction of the Court.
Final Decision: The revision application was dismissed, but there was no order as to costs.
2. Mr. V.M. Kulkarni, the learned Counsel for the applicants, challenged the impugned order of the Appellate Court on three counts. He firstly submitted that the non-applicants had already initiated proceedings under the Mamlatdars' Courts Act which were pending at the time when the suit was filed. According to Shri Kulkarni, if those proceedings were pending, in which the non-applicants had claimed some relief which they are claiming in the present suit, the trial Court should have refrained from proceeding with the suit. Mr. Kulkarni secondly submitted that both the courts below have not taken into consideration the fact that in the sale-deed dated 16-9-1952, under which the original owner, namely Surajmal had sold the field S.No. 31/3 to Vishwanath, who is predecessor-in-tile of the applicants, no mention has been made of the way through S.No. 31/3 through in the sale-deed executed by Surajmal on the same day in respect of field S.No. 31/1 such a mention has been made by interpolation of a line in the recital in the sale-deed executed by Surajmal in favour of Vishwanath ought to have been given due weight by the Courts below and non-consideration of this aspect seriously affects the decision. Thirdly Mr. Kulkarni submits that no public documents have been produced to show that the way existed through field S.No. 31/3 for approaching field S.No. 31/1. According to him, normally if there is a right way through the field, there would be a mention of it in the relevant revenue records.
3. Mr. Khapre, the learned Counsel for the non-applicants, raised preliminary objection to the maintainability of the revision application on the ground that the order of the trial Court was appealable order and kif that was so, the present revision application would be barred under sub-section (2) of section 115 of the Code of Civil Procedure (hereinafter referred to as 'the Code'). For this proposition he relies on the decision of a learned Single Judge of the Madhya Pradesh High Court in (Ramdeen v. Ramswaroop)1, 1981 M.P.L.J. 575. Sub-section (2) of section 115 of the Code states that the High Court shall not, under section 115, vary or reverse any decree or order against which an appeal lies either to the High Court or to any Court subordinate thereto. The plain reading of this sub-section would indicate that the party will not be entitled to invoke the revisional proceedings can be taken up in the Court under section 115 of the code against a decree or an order which is appealable. Now the present revision application has been filed against the order passed by the learned District Judge in an appeal against the order passed by the trial Court under Order 39, Rules 1 and 2 of the Code. What is challenged before this Court is not the order of the trial Court but the order of the Appellate Court. In fact, the order of the trial Court has merged in the order of the Appellate Court. Now appeal was filed before the learned District Judge under the provisions of Order 43. No second appe