A claim for court fee on improvements in a suit for redemption may be considered as a counter claim and is chargeable with court fee under S. 8 of the Court-fees Act, 1955.

ORDER :- This civil revision petition is directed against the order of the learned District Munsif, Tiruvayarru, directing the defendant in the suit to pay court fee upon the value of the improvements which he had claimed in the written statement in a suit for redemption.

2. In paragraphs 10 and 14 of the written statement, the defendant contends that the plaintiff should not be allowed to redeem the othi in any event without paying the costs of the improvements effected by the defendant. A specific issue has also been framed, issue 3, whether the defendant is entitled to the costs of improvements, if any, effected by him ? S. 8 of the Court-fees Act, 1955 provides that a written statement pleading a set oft on a counter claim shall be chargeable with court-fee in the same manner as a plaint.

The contention of the learned counsel appearing for the petitioner, the defendant in the suit, is that the claim of the defendant in the written statement is neither a set off nor a counter claim and therefore S. 8 is not applicable. I am unable to accept that contention. The defendant has clearly made a claim, which is in the nature of a counter claim against the plaintiff in claiming the value of improvements said to have been effected by him. Even under the old Court Fees Act, the decision in Subramanya Iyer v. Lakshmana Ayyar, 1949-2 Mad LJ 785 : (AIR 1951 Mad 742) holds that in cases of this description court-fee is payable.

3. The decision of the court below is right. The civil revision petition fails and is dismissed, but in the circumstances without costs.

Petition dismissed.