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1984 Supreme(Cal) 95

High Court Of Calcutta
Amitabha Dutta
Kali Charan Chakraborty having died, his heirs SM.KASHISWARI CHAKRABORTY - Appellant
Versus
DURGACHARAN BANERJEE HAVING DIED HIS HEIRS ANANDAMOYEE BANERJEE - Respondent
Second Appeal 861  Of  1976
Decided On : 03/22/1984

Advocates Appeared:
SYMA PRASANNA ROY CHAUDHURY

The benefit of a negative covenant in a sale deed runs with the land and can be enforced by the transferee of the covenantee against the transferee of the covenantor.

Headnote:

EASEMENT - NEGATIVE COVENANT - ENFORCEABILITY - TRANSFER OF PROPERTY ACT, 1882 - SS. 11, 40 - Whether the benefit of a negative covenant in a sale deed can be enforced by the transferee of the covenantee against the transferee of the covenantor.

Fact of the Case:

The plaintiff, as the successor-in-interest of the original covenantee, sought to enforce a negative covenant in a sale deed against the defendant, who was the transferee from the heirs of the original covenantor. The covenant restricted the use of the land sold to the covenantor for the benefit of the unsold land retained by the covenantee.

Finding of the Court:

The court held that the benefit of the negative covenant ran with the land and could be enforced by the plaintiff, as the successor-in-interest of the covenantee, against the defendant, as the transferee of the covenantor.

Issues: 1. Whether the negative covenant in the sale deed of 1915 could be enforced by the plaintiff, as the successor-in-interest of the covenantee, against the defendant, as the transferee from the heirs of the covenantor? 2. Whether the defendant, as an auction purchaser from the heirs of the covenanter, was a transferee within the meaning of Section 40 of the Transfer of Property Act, 1882?

Ratio Decidendi: 1. The court interpreted Section 11 and Section 40 of the Transfer of Property Act, 1882, and held that the benefit of a negative covenant in a sale deed can be enforced by the transferee of the covenantee against the transferee of the covenantor. 2. The court held that the defendant, as an auction purchaser from the heirs of the covenanter, was a transferee within the meaning of Section 40 of the Transfer of Property Act, 1882, and therefore bound by the negative covenant.

Final Decision: The court allowed the plaintiff's appeal and dismissed the defendant's appeal, affirming the judgment and decree of the lower appellate court with a modification regarding the removal of the defendant's structures on the northern half of the suit land.

AMITABHA DUTTA, J.

( 1 ) THESE two appeals by the defendants are from the appellate judgment and decree of the learned Additional District Judge, 2nd Court; Alipore (24 Parganas) who has allowed the appeal preferred by the plaintiffs and dismissed the appeal preferred by the defendants, after hearing them analogously and modified the decree passed by the learned Munsif, 4th Court, Alipore in Title Suit No. 217 of 1972 for declarations and permanent and mandatory injunctions.

( 2 ) THE subject matter of the dispute between the parties is a strip of land 59ft in length from east to west and 4ft in width from north to south appertaining to premises No. 35, Fakir Haldar lane, P. S. Bhawanipore in the district of 24 parganas. The said premises originally belonged to Haridas Chatterjee. To the adjacent north of the said premises lie premises No. 33, Fakir Haldar Lane of which Mrinalini Dassi was the original owner. By a registered sale deed dated 19-3-1915 Mrinalini Dassi purchased land measuring 59ft. Being the northern half of the suit land from Haridas Chatterjee who reserved certain rights over the land sold to her for the benefit of the remaining portion of premises No. 35, Fakir Haldar Lane, as at the time of the sale there was a covenant between the Vendor and the Vendee that the Vendee would not disturb the passage of light, air and water over the strip of land sold to her, that the Vendee would not build on it or make any construction except a drain over it and that the drain and privy of premises No 35, could be connected with the drain of premises No 33. Thereafter the interest of Mrinalini Dassi in premises No. 3, Fakir Haldar Lane and the northern half of the suit land devolved on her heirs Netaidas Mallick and others. The right, title and interest of Haridas Chatterjee in the land and building within premises No 35, Fakir Halldar Lane devolved on his heirs Tara Prasad Chatterjee and others and were sold by them in 1942 to Tinkari Banerjee, whose sole successor-in-interest was the original plaintiff in the present suit. Tinkari Banerjee obtained a decree for permanent injunction against. Netaidas Mallick and others restraining them from obstructing his easement rights over the northern half of the suit land and his ownership rights over the southern half of the suit land in Title Suit No 112 of 1948, which was renumbered as Title Suit No 71 of 1949. Thereafter in the course of sale in Money Execution Case No. 9 of 1959 against Netaidas mallick and others, the heirs of Mrinalini Dassi the premises No. 33, Fakir haldar Lane along with northern half of he suit land was auction purchased by Kali Charan Chakraborty the original defendant in the present suit.

( 3 ) THE plaintiff's case was that he carried on his business at Gauhati in Assam and lived there with his family. Taking advantage of his absence the defendant without knowledge of the plaintiff encroached upon the northern part of the suit land and illegally and wrongfully constructed two kitchens shown by the letters 'k' and 'k (i)'; two urinals shown by the letters 'u' and 'u (i) and a privy shown by the letter 'p' in the sketch map of the schedule to the plaint, in breach of the restrictive covenant expressed in the sale deed dated 19-3-1915 and has obstructed the plaintiffs' user of and interfered with the easement rights of passage of air, light and water over the northern half of the suit land shown by the letters, "a', "b", "e' and "f' in the sketch map. The plaintiff has claimed absolute title to the southern half of the suit land shown by the letters "e, "c', "d" and "f" in the sketch map, permanent injunction restraining he defendants from interfering with the plaintiff' easement rights over the northern half of the suit land and mandatory injunction for removal of the aforesaid structures constructed by the defendants.

( 4 ) THE defendant resisted the suit by filing a written statement in which various pleas were taken but such pleas were not followed u











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