Court fee payable on Memorandum of Appeal.

Madras Act XI of 1954, The Madras Slum Improvement (Acquisition of Land) Act, confers by section 3 thereof power upon the State Government to acquire land for the purpose of clearing or improving an area, where such area has been notified to be a slum area. A notification published under section 3(1) vests the land in the State Government. Section 5 provides that every person whose right, title or interest in any land is acquired under the Act, shall be entitled to receive and be paid compensation as provided. Section 6 of the Act lays down that the amount payable as compensation shall be lesser of the two amounts: (1) an amount equal to five times the net annual average income derived from such land during the period of five consecutive years immediately preceding the publication of the notice: (2) the amount that would have been payable as compensation under the Land Acquisition Act, 1894, in respect of such land, had such land been acquired under that Act. The net average annual income has to be calculated in the manner and in accordance with the principles set out in the Schedule to the Act. The prescribed authority has to hold an enquiry in the prescribed manner and determine, for the purpose of computing the amount payable as compensation (1) the net average annual income and (2) the amount that would have been payable as compensation under the Land Acquisition Act, 1894. Under sub-section (3) of the section 6, the prescribed authority has to publish a notice in the Fort St. George Gazette setting out the amount so determined and calling upon every person interested to intimate before a specified date whether such person agrees to the amounts determined and, if not, what amount he claims to be the net average annual income or the amount that would be payable under the Land Acquisition Act, 1894. Sub-section. (4) (a) provides for an appeal to the Court, and it is in these terms:

"Any person who does not agree to the amount of the net average annual income or to the amount that would have been payable as compensation under the Land Acquisition Act, 1894, as determined by the prescribed authority under sub-section (3) and claims a sum in excess of that amount, may prefer an appeal to the Court within thirty days from the date specified in the notice referred to in the sub-section.“

Sub-section (b) provides for a Second Appeal on any question of law in certain cases.

The present Civil Revision Petition arises from the decision of the Principal Judge of the City Civil Court, Madras holding that the Court-fee payable on a memorandum of appeal under section 6 (4) (a) of the Act should be computed on the difference between the amount fixed as the net average annual income and the amount claimed in the appeal. The learned Principal Judge relied upon section 51 of the Madras Court-fees Act in coming to this conclusion. It is the correctness of that decision that is canvassed in this Revision Petition, the contention of the petitioner being that the appeal is not against the amount awarded but against, the computation of a different sum. That being so, section 51 will not apply and the Court-fee payable on the memorandum of appeal must, according to the petitioner be only under Article 3 of Schedule II to the Court-fees Act.

Section 51 of the Court-fees Act is in these terms:

"The fee payable under this Act on a memorandum of appeal against an order relating to compensation under any Act for the time being in force for the acquisition of property for a public purpose shall be computed on the difference between the amount awarded and the amount claimed by the appellant.”

Article 3 of Schedule II, which according to the petitioner, is the relevant Article applicable to the present case, reads thus:

“A memorandum of appeal from an order, inclusive of an order determining any question under section 47 or section 144 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 and not otherwise provided for, when presented (1) to any Court other than the High