N. N. Mithal, J. - (1.) THIS appeal purports to be one under section 384 of the Indian Succession Act, 1925. It is directed against an order passed by the Civil Judge reiecting appellant's application for revocation of Succession Certificate granted to the respondents and also an order extending the grant of Succession Certificate in respect of some other assets.
(2.) LEARNED counsel for the respondents has taken a preliminary objection about the maintainability of the appeal. His submission is that when powers of the District Judge are conferred on Civil Judge under section 388 (1) an appeal against an order passed by him only lies to the District Judge, irrespective of the valuation of the appeal. Part X of the Indian Succession Act deals with matters relating to grant of succession certificate and contains sections 370 to 390 in that part. Under section 372 an application for grant of a Succession Certificate ordinarily lies before the District Judge within whose territorial jurisdiction the deceased ordinarily resided or part of his property was situate. Section 384 deals with the forum where the appeal in such cases shall lie. It is, however, of significance that the section is prefaced with the words, 'subject to other provisions of this part'. Thus, although in the ordinary circumstances an appeal against order passed in proceedings in this Chapter shall lie to the High Court but this is hedged by the condition that there is no other provision contrary to this or which may provide otherwise. Section 388 of the Act, however, lays down a some what different provision, even if not contrary. The relevant part of the section may be extracted here as under : "388(1). The State Government may, by notification in the Official Gazettere, invest any Court inferior in grade to a District Judge with power to exercise the functions of a District Judge under this Part. (2) Any inferior Court so invested shall, within the local limits of its jurisdiction, have concurrent jurisdiction with the District Judge in the exercise of all the powers conferred by this part upon the District Judge, and the provisions of this Part relating to the District Judge shall apply to such an inferior Court as if it were a District Judge : Provided that an appeal from any such order of an inferior Court as is mentioned in sub-section (1)of section 384 shall lie to the District Judge, and not to the High Court, and that the District Judge may, if he hinks fit, by his order on the appeal, make any such declaration and direction as that sub-section authorises the High Court to make by its order on an appeal from an order of a District Judge." Thus where powers of the District Judge under this Part are conferred upon an inferior Court by a notification issued by the State Government, such court shall exercise the powers of the District Judge so far as part X of the Act is concerned. An appeal against its orders instead of being filed before the High Court, will lie before the District Judge. In fact, whatever powers the District Judge enjoys in this Part after notification gets vested in the Civil Judge.
(3.) IT is not disputed here that a notification conferring powers of the District Judge on the Civil Judge has been issued and the proceedings out of which the present appeal arises had been disposed of by that Court in exercise of powers so conferred. For the appellant, however, it was submitted that in view of amendment of Bengal, Agra and Assam Civil Courts Act, 1887, in this State an appeal to the High Court lies in all matters of civil nature where the valuation of the suit or proceeding was more than Rs. 20,000/-. Since the valuation of proceeding in this matter was admittedly more than Rs. 20,000/- the present appeal was cognizable by the High Court. This argument, however, overlooks some crucial words occurring in the relevant provision of that Act. Chapter III of the 1887 Act deals with ordinary jurisdiction of the various kind of Civil Courts established under that Act. while under Section 18 the pecuniary jurisdiction of the Court of District Judge and the Civil Judge extends to all suits of civil nature but subject only to the condition that the suit must be filed in the Court of lowest grade, (Section 15 CPC). Since section 19 of the Act fixes the jurisdiction of the Court of Munsif at Rs. 5000/- (now Rs. 10,000/-) all suit or proceedings of a value more than that will ordinarily lie in the Court of the Civil Judge or the District Judge subject to the provision of any other Act then in force. Sections 20 and 21 then deal with forum where an appeal will lie against the order of the District or Additional District Judge and from the order of the Civil Judge or the Munsif respectively. In the case of the former, appeal will lie to the High Court unless provided to the contrary in any other enactment. In the latter case the appeal shall lie to the District Judge if the valuation of the suit or proceeding be Rs. 20,000/- or less and to the High Court in other cases.;