HIGH COURT OF CALCUTTA
Sinha
INDIAN AND GENERAL INVESTMENT TRUST LTD. - Appellant
Versus
RAMCHANDRA MARDARAJA DEO, RAJA OF KHALIKOTE - Respondent
O. O. C. J. Appln. Of .
Decided On : JANUARY 15, 1952
The Court held that the English Court did not have jurisdiction to entertain the actions or pass judgment thereof. In any event, the judgments are without jurisdiction from an international point of view and cannot be enforced under Section 44 A of the Code. The objection under Section 13 (a) of the Code is upheld.
Fact of the Case:
The Indian and General Investment Trust Ltd. , suing as Trustees of the Khalli-kote Raj Sterling Loan, 1906 and another by the Indian and General Investment Trust Ltd. , for an order that certified copies of the orders passed on the 29th day of November 1949 by the High Court of Justice, Chancery Division, England, in Actions Nos. 337 of 1949 and 351 of 1949 of that Court together with certified copies of the certificates dated the 9th day of January 1950 issued by the Master of the Supreme Court of Judicature in England, granted under Section 10 of the Foreign judgments (Reciprocal Enforcement) Act, 1933, together with the usual certificate of non-satisfaction, be transmitted to the District Judge's Court at Berhampore in the province of Orissa, for execution.
Finding of the Court:
The Court held that the English Court did not have jurisdiction to entertain the actions or pass judgment thereof. In any event, the judgments are without jurisdiction from an international point of view and cannot be enforced under Section 44 A of the Code. The objection under Section 13 (a) of the Code is upheld.
Issues: Whether the English Court had jurisdiction to entertain the actions or pass judgment thereof. Whether the judgments are without jurisdiction from an international point of view and cannot be enforced under Section 44 A of the Code.
Ratio Decidendi: The Court held that the English Court did not have jurisdiction to entertain the actions or pass judgment thereof. In any event, the judgments are without jurisdiction from an international point of view and cannot be enforced under Section 44 A of the Code. The objection under Section 13 (a) of the Code is upheld.
Final Decision: The Court dismissed the applications with costs.
( 1 ) THESE are two applications, one by the Indian and General Investment Trust. Ltd. , suing as Trustees of the Khalli-kote Raj Sterling Loan, 1906 and another by the Indian and General Investment Trust Ltd. , for an order that certified copies of the orders passed on the 29th day of November 1949 by the High Court of Justice, Chancery Division, England, in Actions Nos. 337 of 1949 and 351 of 1949 of that Court together with certified copies of the certificates dated the 9th day of January 1950 issued by the Master of the Supreme Court of Judicature in England, granted under Section 10 of the Foreign judgments (Reciprocal Enforcement) Act, 1933, together with the usual certificate of non-satisfaction, be transmitted to the District Judge's Court at Berhampore in the province of Orissa, for execution. These applications have been made under Section 44a read with Section 39 of the Code of Civil Procedure. By consent of parties, the two matters have been heard together.
( 2 ) THE facts are briefly as follows:
( 3 ) KHALIKOTE and Atagea are zemindary, estates situated in Orissa. The respondent is the present zemindar. He is governed by the Mitakshara School of Hindu Law and he has a son who has not been made a party to these proceedings. In the year 1903, his father the late Raja, Saheb Meherban-i-Dostan Sri Sri Harihar Mardaraja Deo, was alive. The respondent is his only son and was born in 1900. In 1903, therefore, he was only an infant, three years old. In the year 1903. the late Raja being burdened by debts contracted by himself and also for outstanding Government revenue and cesses, conceived the idea of raising a loan in England of 135,000 upon the security of the zemindary properties. In order to effectuate his intention, an application was made before the High Court of Madras in its Extraordinary Original Civil Jurisdiction, and an order was made on the 24th September, 1903, appointing the late Raja as the Guardian of his minor son's property with power to mortgage the minor's share for the purposes of raising a Debenture loan of 135,000. The said loan was duly raised by floating a Debenture loan in London. By indenture dated 23rd October 1903, the late Raja, for himself and as guardian of his infant son, transferred the zemindary estates to the Indian General Investment Trust Ltd. , as Trustees for the redemption of 135,000 raised on 1350 Debentures of 100 each. The remuneration paid for the London financial agents was 10,800. In these applications, however, we are not concerned with this loan but a subsequent loan raised by the late Raja in 1906. It appears that in 1906, the late Raja wished to raise a further sum of 77,500. The entire process was therefore repeated. On the 11th December 1906, an order was obtained from the High Court of Madras in its Extraordinary Original Civil jurisdiction, appointing the late Raja as guardian of the property of the minor son, with power to mortgage his share for purposes of raising the new Debenture loan. I set out below the exact wordings of the order, as it is material:"it is ordered that the Rajah be and is hereby appointed guardian of the property of the said Sri Ramchandra Patta Deo during his minority and that the Rajah shall have the following limited powers (and no others), that is to say: firstly, as such guardian as aforesaid and for the purpose of binding the interest of the said Sri Ramchandra Patta Deo therein to mortgage the estates of Khallikote and Atagada for the purpose of raising a further debenture loan of 77,500, and Secondly, as such guardian as aforesaid, to execute such Deeds and Documents as may be necessary for completing and carrying into effect the said debenture loan and vesting the said estates by way of mortgage in trustees for the benefit of the debenture holders. "
( 4 ) UPON this order, several questions have been raised, namely, as to whether the High Court of Madras has jurisdiction to pass such an order; secondly, as to whether in a
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