Gujarat High Court
Judgename :B.K.MEHTA
MALEK BAVAJI AMARKHAN - Appellant
Versus
BAI SONBAI - Respondent
Civil Revision 1038 of 1976
Decided On : 03/30/1977
Arbitration Act - Section 47 - Civil Procedure Code - Order 32 Rule 7 – Partition of esatate – Settlement of dispute - Petitioners mother is one of three daughters of one - Plaintiff died during pendency of suit and therefore present petitioner was brought record as her heir and legal representative - Similarly original defendant died during pendency of suit and his mother and his widow and his four and two sons were brought on record as respondents respectively - Defendants supported plaintiff in her claim for partition of estate - It was only defendant who contested suit in his written statement filed in trial court - After his death his mother who is defendant supported plaintiffs claim after was brought on record. - Held, Rule therefore prohibits of minor or next friend of minor to compromise or adjust suit without permission of Court - On plain reading of e rule it does not prohibit natural guardian of minor to settle dispute outside Court by making a reference to Arbitrators or by compromising or adjusting matter amicably between parties - A similar view has been taken by Allahabad High Court in and Another Allahabad - In any case whether compromise or adjustment embodied in award and consented to by parties subsequently is in interest of minor or not can certainly be inquired by Court while recording the compromise or adjustment - Court afraid that none of the contentions of can sustain order of District Judge - It is no doubt true that who decided case of observed in his decision that language of proviso to Act is very clear and the consent should be given by parties at time when Court is called upon to consider whether award should be accepted as an adjustment or a compromise - However refrained from entering into any detailed discussion of this question because in his opinion it is not necessary to consider interpretation of language of proviso to - Supreme Court has also in held that in a reference without the intervention of Court has no general jurisdiction over subject matter as in a reference in a pending suit and if sub- mission is superseded in the former there is nothing more Court can do but in later Court must proceed with suit before it and give effect to compromise in suit according to law - Order accordingly
( 1 ) THE petitioners mother Rangbai is one of the three daughters of one Sataji Bhimjikhan; the other two being Hirbai and Ladbai. This Rangbai filed a suit for partition of the estate of her father against the heirs of her aforesaid two sisters. Original defendant No. 1 is the sons son and defendants Nos. 2 to 4 are the sons daughters of the aforesaid Hirbai. Defendant No. 5 is the daughters daughter of Hirbai while defendant No. 6 and 7 are the sons and defendants Nos. 8 and 9 are the daughters of Ladbai. The plaintiff Rangbai died during the pendency of the suit and therefore the present petitioner was brought on the record as her heir and legal representative. Similarly original defendant No. 1 Amirkhan Salimkhan died during the pendency of the suit and his mother Sonbai and his widow Ajubai and his four daughters Manubai Kasubai Ranbai and Rembai and two sons Fatehmohmad and Hanji were brought on the record as respondents Nos. 1 (a) to 1 (h) respectively It should be noted that defendants Nos. 2 to 9 supported the plaintiff in her claim for partition of the estate. It was only defendant No. 1 Amirkhan who contested the suit in his written statement filed in the trial court. After his death his mother Sonbai who is defendant No. 1 (a) supported the plaintiffs claim after she was brought on the record. It was only defendant No. 1 (b) Ajubai the widow of deceased Amirkhan who contested the suit after the demise of Amirkhan. It should be further noted that in the suit there was an application by the original plaintiff for appointment of Receiver for the estate of Sataji. That application was rejected by the trial court with the result that the plaintiff had gone in appeal against that order before the District Court. Before the appeal reached hearing it appears that there was a compromise between the parties and the appeal was withdrawn on that ground and it was stated by the parties that the compromise would be produced in the trial Court for purposes of getting a decree in terms thereof. When the matter was called out before the trial court after withdrawal of the appeal the plaintiff applied for a decree in terms of the award alleged to have been made by the Arbitrator. Original defendant No. 1 (b) Ajubai filed objections to this application of the original plaintiff. The trial court rejected this application of the plaintiff as the award was illegal since it was obtained in a pending suit without the intervention of the Court. The trial court therefore dismissed the application of the plaintiff by its order of July 23 1975 The plaintiff therefore carried the matter in appeal before the District Court at Surendranagar by his Civil Appeal No. 38 of 1975. The District Court agreed with the contention of the plaintiff that the trial court has a power to record the compromise under Order XXIII Rule 3 of the Civil Procedure Code eventhough the award might have been obtained in a pending suit without the intervention of the Court. The learned District Judge however dismissed the appeal of the original plaintiff because in his view Order XXIII Rule 3 of the Civil Procedure Code requires that before a compromise or an adjustment can be accepted in a suit by a Court the same should have been agreed upon and consented to by the parties before the Court. The learned District Judge was also of the view that inasmuch as no permission was granted under Order XXXII Rule 7 of the Civil Procedure Code to Ajubai the widow of Amirkhan for entering into the alleged compromise on behalf of the minors the same was not legal and binding. In that view of the matter therefore the learned District Judge dismissed the appeal of the plaintiff by his order of July 31 1976 It is this order which has been challenged in this revision before me.
( 2 ) IT is settled position of law that where in a suit the parties have referred their difference to the arbitration without an order of the Court and an award is made a decree in terms of the aw
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