Wanchoo, J. - (1.) These are two connected appeals on certificates granted by the Jammu and Kashmir High Court and raise a common question of law. We shall therefore give the facts of one appeal (No. 702) in order to appreciate the question of law which calls for decision.
(2.) Sultan Mohd. Matawali Khan (hereinafter referred to as Sultan Mohd.). Ilaqadar of Kathai was the predecessor-in-interest of the respondents. He had borrowed a sum of Rs. 40,000/- from the appellant-bank on the basis of a promissory-note on November 5, 1941. Before the bank advanced the loan, the Government of the then State of Jammu and Kashmir was approached and it was arranged that the debt would be liquidated through Government. For that purpose an order was issued by the Government that land-revenue of certain villages from the jagir of Sultan Mohd. amounting to Rs.5076/9/6 would be collected by Government and the amount credited in the treasury to the credit of the bank till the sum of Rs. 40,000/- along with interest due thereon was liquidated. It was in consequence of this arrangement that the bank advanced the sum of Rs. 40,000/- to Sultan Mohd. After the loan had been taken and the pro-note executed the bank opened an account in the name of Sultan Mohd., which started with a debit of Rs. 40,000/- on November 5, 1941 Thereafter whatever sum became due to the bank as interest and incidental charges was debited to the account of Sultan Mohd. and the amount received from Government was credited to the account. This went on till 1953 when the jagir of Sultan Mohd. was resumed. The account of Sultan Mohd. with the bank showed a debit of Rs. 2995/12/- on June 3, 1953. On June 4, 1953, the bank filed the suit out of which this appeal has arisen against the respondents as legal representatives of Sultan Mohd. for a sum of Rs. 31025/11/-. To explain the large discrepancy between the amount shown due in the account and the amount for which the suit was filed the bank stated that a sum of list 28029/15/- had been erroneously credited to the account of Sultan Mohd. consequently, the erroneous entries with respect to this credit were corrected and after such correction the amount due came to be Rs. 31,025/11/- for which the suit was filed.
(3.) The suit was resisted by the respondents on various grounds but in the present appeals we are concerned only with one ground, namely, that it was not open to the bank to reverse the credit entries in the account of Sultan Mohd. after they had been made in the manner in which it was done at the instance of the Accountant General of the State of Jammu and Kashmir. Therefore the bank would be only entitled to recover Rs. 2,995/12/- which was the amount shown as due from Sultan Mohd. in the account on June 3, 1953.;