Panattil Narayanan Nair and Others vs Palappetti Vatakkepet Vallath Karunakaran Nair and Others

Rajamannar, C.J.—There is no reason for interference with the order of the learned Judge. Clearly the Board had not done its duty which is

enjoined on it u/s 16 of Madras Act II of 1927 in passing the order which was sought to be set aside by the contesting respondents u/s 76 (2) of

the Act. The order was therefore rightly set aside with the observation made by the learned Judge that the Board would consider afresh the

application for sanction on its merits. It was contended by learned counsel for the petitioners here that though the Board might not have considered

the application on the merits, it was open to the District Court to have considered the materials placed before it and come to a decision on the

merits. I do not agree. I agree with Viswanatha Sastri, J., in Samayamanthula Parvata Vardhanamma Vs. Villa Subba Rao and Others, that it is for

the Board, as a statutory body specially entrusted with the duty of considering an application for sanction u/s 76, to first consider the matter and

the province of the Court is only to examine that order and see if it is necessary to modify or to cancel it. This civil revision petition is, therefore,

dismissed with the costs of respondents 1 and 2.

In one respect, however, I think I should interfere with the order of the learned Judge, in setting aside the order of the Board, he directed the

respondents 2, 3, 4, 6 and 8 before him to pay the costs of the petitioners, fixing a Vakil''s fee of Rs. 250. The costs as determined have come to

Rs. 662-12-0. Now it is clear that if any one was to blame for what had happened, it was the Board, and I do not think it proper that the

petitioners before me should have been mulcted with such heavy costs in a matter In which the learned Judge did not decide on the merits. I think

the proper order which the learned Judge should have passed was an order that parties should bear their own costs. The order so far as costs of

the lower Court are concerned is hereby set aside.