SupremeToday Landscape Ad
Back
Next
Judicial Analysis Court Copy Headnote Facts Arguments Court observation
Listen Audio Icon Pause Audio Icon
judgment-img

2006 Supreme(Cal) 155

High Court Of Calcutta
Girish Chandra Gupta
USHANIL MERCANTILE PRIVATE LTD. - Appellant
Versus
UCO BANK - Respondent
W. P. 383 Of 2006
Decided On : 03/16/2006

Advocates Appeared:
S.CHAUDHARY, SOUMEN SEN

A creditor has an unfettered right to dispense with or remit wholly or in part the performance of any promise or payment of any debt due to him, and this right cannot be restricted by the court.

Headnote:

DEBTS RECOVERY TRIBUNAL - SECTION 26(2) - SECTION 63 OF THE CONTRACT ACT - ACCORD AND SATISFACTION - CREDITOR'S RIGHT TO DISPENSE WITH OR REMIT PERFORMANCE OF PROMISE - TRIBUNAL'S REFUSAL TO REVOKE CERTIFICATE BASED ON VAGUE CONCEPT OF "ECONOMIC JUSTICE" IS UNSUSTAINABLE.

Fact of the Case:

The writ petitioner, a borrower, and the respondent bank, a lender, amicably settled their dispute at a settlement camp, agreeing that the petitioner would pay Rs. 22,73,000/- instead of the original Rs. 16,77,000/-. The petitioner paid the settled amount, but the Debts Recovery Tribunal refused to drop the recovery proceedings, holding that the gap between the recoverable amount and the settlement amount was considerable and that the petitioner had property from which the certificate amount could be realized.

Finding of the Court:

The court held that the Debts Recovery Tribunal erred in law by refusing to revoke the certificate. The court found that there had been an accord and satisfaction between the parties and that the creditor, the respondent bank, had an unfettered right to dispense with or remit wholly or in part the performance of any promise or payment of any debt due to him.

Issues: 1. Whether the Debts Recovery Tribunal erred in refusing to revoke the certificate based on a vague concept of "economic justice". 2. Whether the creditor, the respondent bank, had the right to accept the settlement amount and dispense with the remaining debt.

Ratio Decidendi: 1. The court held that the Debts Recovery Tribunal's refusal to revoke the certificate was unsustainable as it was not supported by any of the provisions of the "recovery of Debts Due to Banks and financial Institutions Act, 1993" or by any known concept of justice. 2. The court relied on Section 63 of the Contract Act, which provides that a promisee may dispense with or remit wholly or in part the performance of the promise made to him, or may extend the time for such performance, or may accept instead of it any satisfaction which he thinks fit.

Final Decision: The court set aside the order of the Debts Recovery Tribunal and directed it to reconsider the matter and pass an appropriate order.

Girish Chandra Gupta, JJ.

( 1 ) THE Order of the Court was as follows : the writ petitioner, in the present case, is the borrower. The respondent bank is the lender. The respondent Bank obtained a certificate for a sum of Rs. 22,27,416. 38p. against the writ petitioner from the Debts Recovery Tribunal. The certificate was issued on September 24, 1997. Subsequently, a settlement camp was held where the parties to this writ petition amicably settled that a consolidated sum of Rs. 16,77,000/- would be payable by the writ petitioner to the respondent Bank within September 30,2002. On the basis of the aforesaid settlement arrived at between the parties, the recovery proceedings were stayed. The writ petitioner, it appears, could not pay the settled amount within the stipulated time. There has thereafter, been further negotiations between the parties taking into consideration the interest for the delay in payment of the settled amount. Parties agreed that a sum of Rs. 22,73,000/- shall be payable instead of the sum of Rs. 16,77,000/ -. It appears from the particulars furnished at page 62 of the writ petition that the aforesaid sum has duly been paid. After the amount was paid by the writ petitioner and received by the Bank, an application was made by the Bank before the Debts Recovery Tribunal praying for an order for dropping the recovery proceedings. The aforesaid application made by the Bank was turned down by the Debts Recovery Tribunal by the impugned order dated January 4,2006.

( 2 ) BOTH the parties submitted before this Court that they have resolved their disputes. The Bank has agreed to settle the matter. On the basis of such agreement the writ petitioner has paid the entire amount. The view adopted by the Debts Recovery Tribunal was unrealistic and illegal too.

( 3 ) THE Tribunal, it appears, has taken the following view :"in my view the conception of economic justice for the purposes of exercising the power to withdraw the certificate under Section 26 (2) of the RDB Act, 1993 must be understood in the perspective of the principles of economic justice imbibed in the constitution which advances the economy of the country vis-a-vis the public money in public sector banks for the public good and to every fairness of justice and to strengthen the basic economic structure of the society the public money should be recovered to its possible maximum score. In case, with this spectacle of the doctrine of economic justice the provisions of said Section 26 (2) of the RDB Act, 1993 are viewed, it does not provide any scope to withdraw the certificate and drop the recovery proceedings where there is considerable gap between the recoverable amount and the amount to be paid under the settlement and where there exists the property of the certificate debtor from which the certificate amount may be realized. "

( 4 ) AFTER considering the submissions made by the writ petitioner and the respondent, who unanimously prayed for reversal of the order passed by the Debts Recovery Tribunal, this Court is of the view that there has been an accord and satisfaction. The Debts Recovery Tribunal fell into a serious error of law. Section 63 of the Contract Act provides as follows :"63. Promisee may dispense with or remit performance of promise.-Every promisee may dispense with or remit, wholly or in part, the performance of the promise made to him, or may extend the time for such performance, or may accept instead of it any satisfaction which he thinks fit. "statutory illustration (b) to Section 63 is apposite which provides as follows:" (b) A owes B 5,000 rupees. A pays to B, and 6 accepts, in satisfaction of the whole debt, 2,000 rupees paid at the time and place at which the 5,000 rupees were payable. The whole debt is discharged. "

( 5 ) A bare reading of illustration (b) to Section 63 of the Contract Act would make it clear that the creditor has an unfettered right in law to dispense with or remit wholly or in part the performance of any promise o



Click Here to Read the rest of this document

1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
Judicial Analysis

AI

SupremeToday Portrait Ad
supreme today icon
logo-black

An indispensable Tool for Legal Professionals, Endorsed by Various High Court and Judicial Officers

Please visit our Training & Support
Center or Contact Us for assistance

qr

Scan Me!

India’s Legal research and Law Firm App, Download now!

For Daily Legal Updates, Join us on :

whatsapp-icon Back to top