SUNIL KUMAR ROY versus M/S. BHOWRA KANKANEE COLLIERIES LTD. & ORS.

Citation: [1971] 3 S.C.R. 232 · Decided: 15-12-1970 · Supreme Court of India · Bench: J.C. SHAH · Disposal: Dismissed

Judgment (excerpt)

232 
• 
SUNIL KUMAR ROY 
v. 
M/S. BHOWRA KANKANEE COLLIERIES LTD. & ORS. 
December 15, 1970 
(J. C. SHAH, K. S. HEGDE AND A. N. GROVER, JJ.] 
Indian Registration 
Act, 1908-Registered /ease-Docu11zent 
l'i:/Jich 
raries essential ter111s such as a1no1111t of rent n1ust be registered. 
The appellant purchased machineries etc. from the Eastern Coal Co. 
Ltd. and also took on lease the land on which the buildings stood. One of 
the terms of the lease which was dated May 17. 1946 was that royalty 
would be paid by the appellant at the rate of Re. 1/- per ton on despatches 
. of coke. 
Jn 1950 another arrangement was arrived at by which royaJty 
on breeze coke was to be paid at 2 As. pe, ton. 
In December 1951. 
according to the appellant. another arrangement was. made by 
which 
the royalty on hard coke was reduced to 8 As. per ton_. 
The Eastern 
Coal Co. sold the collieries to Respondent no. 1 with effect from Jan•1ary 
I, 1955. 
Respondent no. 1 claimed royalty on all despatches of coke 
including breeze coke at the rate of Re. 1 per ton. 
The appellant paid 
only at . the rate of 8 As. per ton on hard coke and 2 As. per ton on 
breeze coke. 
Rcspondeht no. I filed a suit for the balance at the rate 
of Re. I per ton. 
The trial court held that document Exp. A-4 on which 
the appellant relied to prove the agreed reduction of rates was admissible 
in evidence although not registered, and dismissed the suit. 
The High 
Court did not consider the question of the admissibility of Ex. A-4 but 
decreed the suit on th" finding that the appellant had failed to prove that 
the reduction in the rate of royalty had been. given effect to from July 
1952 as claimed. 
In appeal by certificate to this Court, 
HELD : Even on the assumption that a mutual arrang1 ·;:,1cnt or agree· 
ment as evidenced by Ex A-4 was arrived at between the appellant and 
the Eastern Coal Co. Ltd. it could not be accepted that any reduction 
in royalty could have been effected by means of Exh. A-4 which bad 
not been registered under the provisions of the Indian Registration Act. 
JI. is well settled that a document which varies the essential terms of the 
existing registered lease such as the amount of rent, must be registered. 
· [234 E-F] 
Durga Prasad Singh v. Rajend.a Narain Bagchi,. l.L.R. 37 Cal. 293 
and La/it. Mohan Ghosh v. Gopal Chuck Coal Co. Ltd., J.L.R. 39 Cal. 
284, approved. 
A 
B 
c 
D 
E 
F 
Obai Goundan v. Ramalinga Ayyar, I.LR. 22, Mad. 217, disapproved, 
CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION : Civil Appeal No. 2428 of 
G 
1966. 
Appeal from the judgment and decree dated October 9, 1964 
of the Patna High Court in Appeal from original decree No. 459 
of 1959. 
B. Sei1 and Sukumar Ghose, for the appellant. 
M. c. Chagla, S. C .. Banerjee and A. K. Nag, for respond~nts 
Nos. 1 and 2. 
H 
•
A 
B 
c 
D 
s. K. ROY v. BHOWllA COLLIER,IES (Grover, J.) 
233 
The Judpent of the Court was delivered by-
Grover, J.-This is an appeal by certificate from a judgment 
of the Patna High Court. 
The facts may be shortly stated. 
By 
a registered indenture of lease dated December 18, 1900 the 
Eastern Coal Co. Ltd. was granted a lease by the Zamindar of 
Jharia of certain land in mauza Gourkhanti in pargana Jharia. 
The Eastern Coal Co. erected buifdings for manufacture of coke 
and also constructed office and the quarters for the staff and the 
labourers. On May 17, 1946 the Eastern Coal Co. sold the 
machineries on the demised land to the appellant and also granted 
a lease of the land on which the buildings stood to him. 
One 
of the terms of the lease was that royalty would be paid by the 
appellant at the rate of Re 1 per ton on despatches of coke. 
The 
rate was subjecte<J. to being revised from time to time by mutual 
arrangement between the parties ."as .may be justified by market 
condition." According to the appel)imt the Eastern Coal Com-
Pl¥1Y came to an arrangement in 1950 with him by which royalty 
on breeze coke was to be paid at the rate of 2 As. per ton. 
In 
December 1951 another arrangement was arrived at by which 
royalty on hard coke was to be paid at the reduced rate of 8 As. 
per ton instead o~ Re. 1 per ton stipulated in the lease dated 
May 17, 1946. This arrangement was to be given effect to from 
July 19, 1952. ·On January, 5, 1955 the Eastern Coal Com-
p~ny informed the appellant that the colliery had been sold to 
E 
the Bhowra Kankanee Collieries Ltd.-respondent No. 1, the 
sale being effective from January l, 1955. Respondent No. 1 

Excerpt shown. Read the full judgment & AI analysis in Lexace.