KANSHI RAM Vs. TARLOK SINGH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS regular first appeal is directed against the judgment and final decree of the trial Court, passed on 28th January, 1958, whereby in a suit for dissolution of partnership and rendition of accounts it had decreed the claim of the Plaintiff to the extent of Rs. 10,517 -10 -6 with costs against the Defendant Appellant. The Plaintiff Respondent has also filed cross objections praying that a further sum of Rs. 8,000 over and above the amount already decreed in his favour be allowed. Both the appeal and cross objections will be disposed of by this judgment.

(2.) THE facts of the case are quite simple. Tarlok Singh Plaintiff Respondent and Kanshi Ram Defendant Appellant entered into partnership by virtue of a deed executed on 5th February, 1949. The partnership business included the purchase of wood in jungles, the cutting of wood, sale of wood and running of brick kilns. The parties continued their business together for some time. According to the averments in the plaint, the partnership started business of brick kilns at Mauzas Trawari, Sultanpur, Khawaja Ahmadpur, etc., but the account books were in possession of the Defendant Appellant in view of the terms as contained in the partnership deed. The allegations are that the Defendant started mis -appropriating the entire cash and did not make correct entries in the account books. The Plaintiff then served a notice on the Defendant on 14th October, 1955, asking him to render the accounts but to no effect. A suit was, therefore, filed on 25th April, 1956, praying for a decree for dissolution of the partnership firm which was working under the name and style of M/s Kanshi Ram Tarlok Singh, and also for rendition of accounts.

(3.) DEFENDANT Appellant produced his account books relating to the partnership and Plaintiff Respondent was afforded an opportunity to inspect the same. The case of the Defendant was that some of the account books like, Khata register commencing from 1st November, 1950, and the Rokar, that is, the cash books, were taken away by a monkey and many pages had been torn by him. Most of the entries were resurrected with the result that it became necessary for the Local Commissioner to find out what the true state of accounts was. In order to establish various items relating to credit and debit between the parties, evidence was produced both by the Plaintiff and the Defendant before the Local Commissioner. For the purposes of the present appeal it is not necessary to go into the details of the various depositions made by the witnesses and suffice to mention that after examining the witnesses for the parties, including the parties themselves, the Local Commissioner submitted his report on 31st March, 1957. He was of the view that the Plaintiff should be made to pay to the Defendant Rs. 7,910 -6 -6 as principal and Rs. 1,440 as interest, thus the total amount of Rs. 9,350 -6 -0 on account of fire -wood business and the brick -kiln business at Tarawari. In respect of the other two brick kilns, the finding of the Local Commissioner was that the Defendant Appellant had deliberately withheld the accounts of those kilns.