BEFORE THE MADURAI BENCH OF MADRAS HIGH COURT
K.MURALI SHANKAR, J.
Kanagaraj - Petitioner
Vs.
Ramamoorthy - Respondent
C.R.P. (MD).No.601 of 2021 and C.M.P(MD)No.3344 of 2021
Decided On : 07-10-2021
Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 - Order 26 Rules 9 and 10 - Indian Evidence Act, 1872 - Section 45, 73 – Defendant borrowed a sum of Rs. 30,00,000/-, for his family expenses and for constructing building from plaintiff and executed a promissory note agreeing to repay principal amount with interest at 12% per annum either to plaintiff or to his order on demand, that despite repeated requests, defendant has failed to pay any amount towards principal or interest and plaintiff was constrained to file above suit for recovery of Rs.38,10,000/- with interest at 12% per annum from date of suit till payment and for costs - Main contention of revision petitioner/plaintiff is that this Court had been repeatedly held that age of ink in disputed document and probable time at which age writing had been made or signature had been afixed, cannot be verified by any forensic expert or hand writing expert and that there is no such facility available in entire India to find out age of hand writing or signature found in a document – Held, there is no mechanism or scientific method to find out age of writing or ink - But learned Additional District Judge, without considering non-availability of any such mechanism, by simply observing that defendant has to be given an opportunity to prove his defence and no prejudice would be caused to plaintiff, allowed petition - Hence, this Court has no hesitation to hold that impugned order is not good in law and same is liable to be set aside - Considering this Court has already fixed time limit for disposal of suit and same was not complied with, as proceedings were subsequently stayed by this Court in present revision, Court is of view that necessary directions are to be issued for early disposal of suit - Civil Revision Petition allowed.
ORDER :
The Civil Revision Petition is directed against the order passed in I.A.No.100/2020, in O.S.No. 5 of 2019, dated 05.01.2021, on the file of the Additional District Judge (Fast Track Court) Palani, in allowing the petition filed under Section 73 of Indian Evidence Act and under Order 26 Rules 9 and 10 of the Code of Civil Procedure.
2. The revision petitioner is the plaintiff and he filed the suit in O.S.No.5 of 2019, for recovery of money due on a promissory note. The respondent/defendant has filed the written statement and is contesting the suit.
3. The case of the plaintiff is that the defendant borrowed a sum of Rs. 30,00,000/- on 04.10.2016, for his family expenses and for constructing building from the plaintiff and executed a promissory note agreeing to repay the principal amount with interest at 12% per annum either to the plaintiff or to his order on demand, that despite the repeated requests, the defendant has failed to pay any amount towards principal or interest and that therefore, the plaintiff was constrained to file the above suit for recovery of Rs.38,10,000/- with interest at 12% per annum from the date of suit till payment and for costs.
4. The defence of the defendant is that the defendant has neither borrowed any amount nor executed any promissory note in favour of the plaintiff, that the plaintiff with the help of his close friends had created the promissory note and filed the suit, that the defendant's signature has been forged and the thumb impression found in the promissory note is not that of the defendant, that the plaintiff has no capacity to advance the loan amount of Rs. 30,00,000/-, that the plaintiff's brother's wife Kanna, who is running a Textile Shop in the building owned by the defendant has filed a suit against the defendant for permanent injunction and that the said Kanna had setup the plaintiff to file the above suit with evil intention and to cause hardship to the defendant.
5. Pending suit, the plaintiff has filed a petition in I.A.No.125 of 2019 under Order 26 Rule 9 C.P.C read with Section 45 of the Evidence Act for appointment of Advocate Commissioner to take the promissory note, dated 04.10.2016 to the hand writing expert, for comparing the disputed signature of the defendant on the promissory note with admitted signatures of the defendant and for getting expert opinion. The defendant has filed a counter statement, stating that he did not execute any promissory note, that the plaintiff has filled up the printed form of promissory note given by the defendant long ago to his land-lord and that the promissory note should be sent to expert, to findout the age of the ink.
6. At the enquiry, the learned Counsel for the plaintiff has made an endorsement that since the defendant has admitted the signature found in the suit promissory note, the said petition may be dismissed as withdrawn. The learned Additional District Judge, by recording the endorsement made by the learned Counsel for the plaintiff, has dismissed the said petition as withdrawn, vide order dated 11.02.2020.
7. It is evident from the records that the above suit was originally filed before the Principal District Court, Dindigul, that the plaintiff along with the plaint has filed a petition in I.A.No.10 of 2019, under Order 38 Rule 5 of C.P.C, for attachment of the petition mentioned properties therein before judgment and that the Principal District Court, after enquiry, has passed an order dated 02.04.2019, dismissing the said petition. Aggrieved by the said dismissal order, the plaintiff has preferred an appeal in C.M.A(MD)No.632 of 2019, before this Court and this Court, after recording the undertaking given by the learned Counsel for the defendant, that the defendant will not alienate the petition mentioned properties, disposed of the appeal, vide order dated 28.08.2019. In the said order, this Court has directed the Principal District Court, Dindigul, to dispose of the suit within a period of one year from the date of rece
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