Back
2012 Supreme(Gau) 173
GAUHATI HIGH COURT
B.K.Sharma,P.K.Saikia, JJ.
Bongaigaon Concrete Industries (P.) Ltd. -Appellant
Versus
State of Assam and Ors. -Resopndent
RFA No. 70 of 2006
Decided On : 09-02-2012
Mr. S.P. Roy, Mr. N. Alam, Mr. D. Nandi , Mr. K. Rajbangshi for the appellant.
Mr. P.S. Deka for the respondents.
Headnote:
Civil Procedure Code, 1908 – Section 20 – Contract Act – Section 25 – Decreed Suit against Defendant – Paramount Authority – Decree – Appeal is directed against the judgment passed by learned Civil Judge Guwahati in Money Suit as well as the decree, drawn thereon partly allowing the suit against defendant therein enabling appellant/ plaintiff to realise from defendant with pendente lite interest and future interest at rate at which Nationalised Banks charge interest in relation of commercial transactions while dismissing suit against rest of defendants appellant has preferred this appeal on grounds stated in the memo of appeal – For convenience of discussion appellants herein would be referred to as appellant/plaintiff whereas the respondent would hereinafter be referred to as respondents/ defendant respectively – Held, Learned counsel for plaintiff has also referred us to decision of honble Supreme Court in the case of Union of India v. Ladulal Jain (Equivalent citation being Gordon Woodroffe Sheikh Distillery However, we have found law laid down in those cases has no application to our instant case as facts and circumstances in those cases are materially different from case which is Subject-Matter of present appeal – Decided that plaintiff is entitled to a decree for recovery and severely along with pendente life and future interest at rate at which Nationalized Banks charge interest in relation to commercial transactions. Issue 4, 5 and 6 are accordingly decided affirming decisions of trial court on all these issues subject to modification as indicated – Appeal is dismissed.
1. This appeal is directed against the judgment dated 28.9.2005 passed by Smt. A. Devee, learned Civil Judge (Sr. Divn.) No.2, Guwahati in Money Suit No.40/1998 as well as the decree, drawn thereon partly allowing the suit against the defendant Nos. 1, 2 and 7 therein enabling the appellant/ plaintiff to realise from the defendant Nos. 1, 2 and 7 Rs. 33,320 only with pendente lite interest and future interest at the rate at which Nationalised Banks charge interest in relation of commercial transactions while dismissing the suit against the rest of the defendants.
2. Being aggrieved by the aforesaid judgment and decree, drawn thereon, the appellant has preferred this appeal on the grounds stated in the memo of appeal. For convenience of discussion, the appellants herein would be referred to as appellant/plaintiff, whereas the respondent Nos. 1 to 10 would hereinafter be referred to as respondents/ defendant Nos.1 to 10, respectively.
3. The factual matrix of this case, as .stated in the plaint, in brief, is that the plaintiff M/s. Bongaigaon Concrete Industries (P.) Ltd. is a limited company, incorporated under the Companies Act, 1956 having its Registered Office and principal place of business at Neha Apartment, Sati Jaymati Road, Athagaon, Guwahati-1 and has been engaged in the business manufacturing of RCC Spun Pipes, Septic Tank, PVC Electrical of Railway Sleeper etc. The said company has also been registered as Small Scale Industrial Unit ('SSI Unit') with the Directorate of Industries, Government of Assam. The plaintiff No.2 is the Managing Director of the company, aforementioned.
4. It is stated in the plaint that in compliance of order(s) dated 26.12.1991, 26.6.1992 and 29.4.1992, the plaintiff company had supplied Executive Engineer, Kokrajhar Division (Irrigation), (the defendant No.6) 430 running meters of Hume Pipe through delivery challan and thereafter against such supply order(s), it also submitted the defendant No.6 the bill dated, 20.1.1992 for Rs 51,273, the bill dated 24.7.1992 for Rs. 27,052.70, the bill dated 31.03.1993 for Rs 44,358.52.
5. Further, as against the supply order, dated 29.4.1992 from the defendant No.6, the plaintiff submitted the former another bill dated 31.3.1993 for R3. 03, 03, 428, 05 only. Through the bills aforesaid, the plaintiff, on different dates, claimed Rs.4,26,113.27 in total from the defendant No.6. But the defendant No.6 paid the plaintiff Rs. 20,000 only on 30.9.1992 as against the bill dated 20.1.1992 for Rs. 51,273, and since then, not a single farthing has been by the defendant No.6 to satisfy his outstanding dues amounting to Rs.4,06,113.27 only.
6. It is further been alleged in the pleading that complying the order dated 20.3.1992 from the defendant No.2, the plaintiff supplied the Executive Engineer, Dhubri Division (Irrigation) Gauripur, Assam, (the defendant No.7) the RCC Hume Pipe through delivery challan and in that connection, it had submitted said authority a bill to the tune of Rs.58,322.20 on 10.08.1992. Out of the aforesaid amount, the defendant--No.7 paid the plaintiff Rs. 25,000 only on 26.8.1995. The defendant No.7 too did pay the plaintiff remaining dues although later keeps on demanding the same quite off and on.
7. It is also the case of the plaintiff that in response to the supply order dated 13.2.1992 from the defendant No.5; the plaintiff again supplied the Executive Engineer, Barpeta Division (Irrigation) Sorbhog, (the defendant No.8) the RCC Hume Pipe through delivery challan and submitted a bill in that regard on 29.8.1992 claiming Rs.42,229.80 paise only from the defendant No.8. However, the date not a single farthing has been released against such a bill. Owing to such failure on the part of the defendants - the defendant Nos. 6, 7 and 8 in particular - to pay his dues, the plaintiff requested them to clear the entire outstanding amount, same being Rs.4,81,663.31 only.
8. However, instead of paying his dues, the defendants keep on pleading
