Ramshai Mull More
v.
Joylall
(High Court Of Judicature At Calcutta)
CALCUTTA HIGH COURT | 02-01-1928
If any of this property has been sold or attached for a period of not less than twenty-one days in execution of the decree of any Court for the payment of money.
2. Let us test this case on the assumption that another creditor altogether is bringing a petition for an adjudication order in insolvency. He gets to know that within three months a person not himself has obtained an award against the alleged debtor and that there was a proceeding in which an attachment had taken place to enforce that award. Could it the said in favour of such petitioning creditor that the words "in execution of the decree of any Court for the payment of money" had been satisfied It seems to me quite impossible to say that. It is true enough that for the purpose of enforcing an award you may treat the award as though it were a judgment and, therefore, you may apply to it all the provisions of Order 21 and various other provisions. It is another thing altogether to say that something which is not a decree must be taken to be a decree with the result that a man is to commit an act of insolvency so that he is to be adjudicated upon a petition presented, it may be by some one who has no concern with the award at all. In my judgment the only way to deal with this matter is to deal with it in the same spirit as in the case to which we have been referred in Re Bankruptcy Notice [1907] K.B. 478. The words "in execution of the decree of any Court for the payment of money" cannot be extended by analogy. They must be extended, if at all, by the legislature and we cannot hold that there has been an act of insolvency when the definition given by the legislature has not been complied with. It may be said that in this case the petitioning creditors debt is in fact the same debt over again. But as I have pointed out we cannot treat an award as a decree except for the purpose of enforcing that award. It seems to me that it is a circumstance of no importance that the petitioning creditors debt in this case is the same debt all over again. The position must be same whatever the petitioning creditors debt is and it is not true to say that it is a mere enforcement of this award which is being sought. It is not, therefore, true to say of the award that i1; is a decree for the purpose of creating an act of insolvency. I think, therefore, that on this ground this appeal fails and must be dismissed with costs.
C.C. Ghose, J.
3. I agree.
Advocates List
For Petitioner
- Shekhar Naphade
- Mahesh Agrawal
- Tarun Dua
For Respondent
- S. Vani
- B. Sunita Rao
- Sushil Kumar Pathak
Bench List
HON'BLE JUSTICE Rankin, C.J
HON'BLE JUSTICE C.C. Ghose, J
Eq Citation
115 IND. CAS. 584
AIR 1928 CAL 840
LQ/CalHC/1928/1
HeadNote
Insolvency and Bankruptcy Laws — Presidency Towns Insolvency Act, 1909 — S. 9 — Adjudication of insolvency — Act of insolvency — Attachment of property in execution of award — Whether constitutes an act of insolvency — Held, no — Attachment of property in execution of award cannot be treated as a decree for the purpose of creating an act of insolvency — Words “in execution of the decree of any Court for the payment of money” in S. 9 cannot be extended by analogy — They must be extended, if at all, by the legislature and we cannot hold that there has been an act of insolvency when the definition given by the legislature has not been complied with — Appeal dismissed — Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1940 — S. 15