( 1 ) THE respondent No. 3 filed Civil Suit No. 399 of 1986 for partition of a residential house jointly owned by plaintiff-respondent No. 3 and the defendant-petitioner. In his written statement, the defendant-petitioner raised an issue with regard to under-valuation of the said property. A preliminary issue with regard to the valuation of the suit was framed by the trial court.

( 2 ) BY the order dated 27. 9. 1988, the learned Additional Civil Judge decided the preliminary issue and held that since the valuation of the suit property was determined on the basis of the annual rental value as assessed by Nagar Mahapalika, the same was justified. Aggrieved by the aforesaid order of the trial court, the defendant-petitioner filed a revision before the District judge, Allahabad, which was dismissed by order dated 16. 3. 1989. Hence this writ petition.

( 3 ) I have heard Sri A. P. Tiwari, learned counsel for the petitioner and Sri A. N. Mishra, learned counsel for respondent No. 3 and have perused the record.

( 4 ) THE main contention of Sri Tiwari, learned counsel for the petitioner, is that since the trial court had called for a report from the Amin-Commissioner and t