PATNA MUNICIPAL CORPORATION Vs. BRIJ RAJ KRISHNA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) These civil revision applications by the Patna Municipal Corporation arise out of the same number of small cause court suits, being small cause court suit No. 64 to 85 of 1951 filed by the petitioner for realisation of house and latrine taxes from the defendants opposite party. In all the small cause court suits Rai Brij Raj Krishna and his brother Rai Gopal Krishna were defendants 1st. party, and the defendants 2nd party were alleged to be the tenants in occupation of the premises at the relevant period. In the various suits arrears of taxes from the 1st April, 1946 to the 20th September, 1951, had been claimed.

(2.) The defendants appeared and contested the suits. The defendants 1st party pleaded, inter alia, that the lalrine tax imposed by Rai Saheb N.N. Gantuly. the then Special Officer of the Patna City Municipality, was ultra vires mid without jurisdiction, and as such, the plaintiff was not entitled to realise any latrine tax for the premises in suit. Defendants 1st party further pleaded in the alternative that the latrine tax was leviable against the occupiers alone and not against the owners of the premises. The defendants 2nd party pleaded, on the other hand, that they were not liable to pay any latrine tax.

(3.) The defendants 1st party filed an application in each of the suits for return of the plaint under Section 23(1) of the Provincial Small Cause Courts Act for presentation on the regular side on the ground that complicated questions raised for decision in the suit cannot be properly decided, by a small cause court. The learned Small Cause Court Judge has, by his order dated the 29th of July, 1952, allowed this application and returned the plaint in each of the suits to be presented on the regular side for being tried as a money suit. The plaintiff has now moved this Court in revision against the said order of the learned Small Cause Court Judge.