- (1.) Special leave granted.
(2.) The plaintiff-Bank filed a suit against the defendants (appellants herein) in O. S. No. 93 of 1987 on the file of the Senior Civil Judge, Ramachandrapuram, Andhra Pradesh, and obtained a preliminary decree on 31.12.87 for a sum of Rs. 70,087.75. The decree holder ought to have filed an application for passing a final decree in case of default on the part of the judgment-debtors on or before 31.12.91, but actually filed an application on 27.7.94 for passing a final decree invoking Order 34 Rule 5, Civil Procedure Code, along with an application under Section 5 of the Limitation Act, 1963 seeking for the condonation of delay of 714 days. It may be pointed out at this stage that on the filing of the suit, the judgment-debtors filed an Insolvency Petition in I. P. No. 6/ 87 and this came to be dismissed on 20. 11.92.
(3.) While dealing with the application for condonation of delay under Section 5 of the Limitation Act made in I. A. No. 1079/ 94, the learned Sub-ordinate Judge dismissed the same on the view that no sufficient cause had been shown to condone the delay. Aggrieved, the Bank pursued the matter before the High Court in a revision C. R. P. No. 610/98. A learned Single Judge of the Andhra Pradesh High Court, while setting aside the order of the Court below, allowed the application for condonation subject to payment of a sum of Rs. 2,000. 00 as costs, which ultimately the counsel for the appellants in the Court below refused to receive, but came to be deposited in Court under orders of the learned Judge. The learned Single Judge was of the view that the Court below had taken not only a strict but hypertechnical view in the matter. It is in such circumstances the judgment-debtors filed the above appeal. Notice has been ordered and the respondent-Bank has filed a counter affidavit to which a re-joinder has also been filed by the appellants.;