Alfred Henry Lionel Leach, C.J.

1. 1. A decree having been passed against the petitioners, the decree-holder applied for execution to the Court of the District Munsif, Thiruvarur. The petitioners then applied for a stay under the provisions of Section 20 of the Madras Agriculturists Relief Act, 1938, in order that they might prefer an application under Section 19 to the Court of the Subordinate Judge, Thiruvarur, for the scaling down of the debt. On the 11th April, 1938, the District Munsif granted a stay. Section 20 contains the following proviso:

Provided that where within sixty days after the application for stay has been granted the judgment-debtor does not apply to the Court which passed the decree for relief under Section 19 or where an application has been so made and is rejected, the decree shall be executed as it stands, notwithstanding anything contained in this Act to the contrary.

2. The petitioners had therefore sixty days in which to apply to the Subordinate Judge. The Court of the Subordinate Judge closed for the summer vacation in the third week of April, 1938 and did not reopen until the 20th June, 1938. As the result of the Court being closed the petitioners