The right of redemption of the mortgagor is an issue to be considered by a Civil Court, and the bank cannot obstruct the exercise of that right.

JUDGMENT :

1. This application for rejecting the plaint has been moved by the defendant Bank.

Case of the plaintiffs:

2. Considering the fact that the application is one for rejecting the plaint, it is necessary to briefly extract the averments contained in the plaint. The respondents / plaintiffs who had taken a housing loan from the Applicant Bank has filed this suit for redeeming the mortgage created as security for the said loan.

3. The respondents who are husband and wife would contend that they had approached the 1st applicant for a home loan of Rs.37,00,000/- for which they had offered the property that they had proposed to purchase as security. On 16.03.2017, a medium term loan was sanctioned, which was repayable in 180 equated monthly instalments of Rs.34,572/- each and the payment was to commence from April 2017. The plaintiffs / respondents had also sought for a Top-up of the term loan of Rs.1,16,75,000/- and on the same day i.e., 16.03.2017, the 1st applicant had sanctioned the amount which was also repayable in 180 equated monthly instalments of Rs.1,14,104/- each commencing from April 2017. The mortgage deed was created in respect of the said property and memorandum evidencing the deposit was also registered. The property which was the subject matter of the mortgage was the flat bearing No.3, First Floor, Plot No.7, D.No.19, Veeraperumal Lane (also known as Bangaru Ammal Street) Mylapore, Chennai -600 004.

4. The respondents would submit that till April 2019 they were regularly paying the EMIs and from May 2019, since the 1st respondent had become unemployed, they were unable to pay the amounts. Therefore, the respondents decided to sell the property and clear the entire outstanding loan which on that day was a sum of Rs.1,44,26,247/-.

5. The respondents would submit that they had also received an offer from a prospective borrower for purchasing the schedule property at a sum of Rs.1,80,00,000/-. The respondents addressed a letter dated 01.07.2019 to the 1st applicant seeking their consent for the sale and also for undertaking to discharge the entire loan and requesting the bank to issue a no objection certificate.

6. On 04.07.2019, the respondents had entered into the agreement of sale with one Mr.T.Viswanathan and Mrs.M.Vasumathi to sell the schedule property for a sum of Rs.1,80,00,000/-. The respondents would state that Rs.1,09,62,722/- was deposited directly to the account of the respondents with the 1st applicant bank. On 05.07.2019, another sum of Rs.12,40,611/- was deposited and on 06.07.2019, a sum of Rs.22,22,914/- was deposited, totalling the entire due of Rs.1,44,26,247/- was deposited by the proposed purchaser into the respondents' account with the 1st applicant Bank. The respondents therefore requested the 1st applicant to return the documents.

7. However, to the shock and surprise of the respondents, the said request was turned down since the 1st applicant had received written instructions from their head office in letter dated 12.04.2017 that the account should be kept on hold even if the amount is fully paid up. In the light of the above, the purchaser had backed out and the entire amount was returned back to him. The applicants by their action had deliberately turned the account into an NPA. Thereafter, on 04.10.2019, there were letters from the 1st applicant asking the respondents to regularise their account, failing which legal action was threatened. Such a contention was raised by the Applicant after they had prevented the respondents for exercising the right to redeem the mortgage.

8. On 23.10.2019, a notice was issued by the respondents to the 1st applicant condemning their action and stating that they are not willing to sell the property by auction as it would fetch a very low amount. In these circumstances, the respondents have come forward with the above suit.

Application to reject the plaint:

9. On receipt of the notice in the above suit, the applicants have come forward with an application to rej