ORDER :- This revision has been preferred against the order of the learned District Munsif, Tirunelveli, rejecting the application of the petitioner for refund of half the court-fee paid on the plaint under S. 69 of the Court Fees Act. The suit had been filed in February 1960 and on 20-11-1961 the case was taken up for hearing. The two exhibits, Exs. A-1 and A-2, were marked in evidence. However, before any oral evidence was recorded in the suit, it was reported as settled out of Court and it was dismissed.

2. Section 69 of the Madras Court Fees and Suits Valuation Act, 1956, which provides for refund of half the court-fees on settlement of the ease before hearing, runs thus :

S. 69: "Wherever any suit is dismissed as settled out of Court, before any evidence has been recorded on the merits of the claim, half the amount of all fees paid in respect of the claim or claims in the suit shall be ordered by the Court to be refunded to the parties by whom the same have been respectively paid.

Explanation: The expression 'merits of the claim' shall have the meaning assigned to it in S. 12."

3. The explanation under S. 12 provides that the expression "merits of the claim" refers to matters, w

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