NARAYANAN NAMBUDRIPAD Vs. BEEPATTUMMA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) These three appeals, filed under Clause 15 of the Letters Patent, all raise the same question, namely, whether in a case where rent is payable in kind and the landlord is suing to enforce payment he is entitled to take the market price ruling on the date of the institution of the suit or whether he must accept the price ruling on the date when the produce should have been delivered to him.

(2.) Under the leases in suit the rents were payable in terms of paddy and were to be delivered at the granary of the landlord on the due date. The District Munsiff held that the landlord was entitled to the market price ruling on the dates when proceedings were instituted. On appeal by the tenants the Subordinate Judge held that the prices to be taken were those ruling when the rents fell due and with this view Chandrasekhara Aiyar, J., in second appeal agreed. These appeals-are from his judgment. The appeals have been heard together and can be dealt, with in one judgment.

(3.) There are numerous decisions of Judges of this Court sitting alone which support the judgment of Chandrasekhara Aiyar, J., but there is a Bench decision which apparently runs to the contrary. In none of the cases has the question of law now under discussion been really discussed.