Act Number: 12

Act Name: The Bengal, Agra and Assam Civil Courts Act, 1887

Year: 1887

Enactment Date: 1887-03-11

Long Title: An Act to consolidate and amend the law relating to Civil Courts in Bengal, the North-Western Provinces and Assam.

Ministry: Ministry of Law and Justice

Department: Department of Justice

Section 21: Appeals from Subordinate Judges and Munsifs.
    (1) Save as aforesaid, an appeal from a decree or order of a Subordinate Judge shall lie--
     (a) to the District Judge where the value of the original suit in which or in any proceeding arising out of which the decree or order was made did not exceed five thousand rupees, and
     (b) to the High Court in any other case.
     (2) Save as aforesaid, an appeal from a decree or order of a Munsif shall lie to the District Judge.
     (3) Where the function of receiving any appeals which lie to the District Judge under sub-section (1) or sub-section (2) has been assigned to an Additional Judge, the appeals may bepreferred to the Additional Judge.
     (4) The High Court may, with the previous sanction of the State Government, direct, by notification in the Official Gazette, that appeals lying to the District Judge under sub-section (2) from all or any of the decrees or orders of any Munsif shall be preferred to the Court of such Subordinate Judge as may be mentioned in the notification, and the appeals shall thereupon be preferred accordingly.
                                                         STATE AMENDMENT
    Assam
     Amendment of section 21.---In the Principal Act, in section 21, in sub-section (1), in clause (a), for the words "fifty thousand rupees" the words "five lakh rupees" shall be substituted.
     (a) to the District Judge where the value of the original suit in which or in any proceeding arising out of which, the decree or order was made, whether instituted or commenced or decided before or after the commencement of the Uttar Pradesh Civil Laws Amendment Act, 1968, was less than twenty thousand rupees; and
     (b) to the High Court, in any other case.
     (I-A) An appeal from a decree or order of Civil Judge where the value of the original suit in which, or in any proceeding arising out of which, the decree or order was made exceeded ten thousand rupees but was less than twenty-thousand rupees instituted in the High Court before the date of commencement of the Uttar Pradesh Civil Laws Amendment Act, 1970, and pending in the High Court immediately before the said date, not being an appeal in which arguments have been concluded before the said date and only judgment disposing of the appeal remains to be pronounced, shall stand transferred to the District Judge having jurisdiction who may either decide it himself or assign it to any Additional Judge sub-ordinate to him.
     (I-B) The period of limitation prescribed for filing an appeal from a decree or order of a Civil Judge where the value of the original suit in which, or in any proceeding arising out of which, the decree or order was made exceeded ten thousand rupees but was less than twenty thousand rupees and the decree or order was made before December 2, 1968, shall, notwithstanding anything in the Limitation Act, 1963, be deemed to be and always to have been the same as if the appeal continued to lie to the High Court."
     (b) to the High Court, in any other case.
     (I-A) An appeal from a decree or order of Civil Judge where the value of the original suit in which, or in any proceeding arising out of which, the decree or order was made exceeded ten thousand rupees but was less than twenty-thousand rupees instituted in the High Court before the date of commencement of the Uttar Pradesh Civil Laws Amendment Act, 1970, and pending in the High Court immediately before the said date, not being an appeal in which arguments have been concluded before the said date and only judgment disposing of the appeal remains to be pronounced, shall stand transferred to the District Judge having jurisdiction who may either decide it himself or assign it to any Additional Judge sub-ordinate to him.
     (I-B) The period of limitation prescribed for filing an appeal from a decree or order of a Civil Judge where the value of the original suit in which, or in any proceeding arising out of which, the decree or order was made exceeded ten thousand rupees but was less than twenty thousand rupees and the decree or order was made before December 2, 1968, shall, notwithstanding anything in the Limitation Act, 1963, be deemed to be and always to have been the same as if the appeal continued to lie to the High Court."
         [Vide Assam Act 44 of 2005, s. 3]
     Amendment of section 21.--In section 21 of the principal Act, in clause (a) of sub-section (1), for the words "five thousand rupees" the words "seven thousand rupees" shall be substituted.
         [Vide Assam Act 9 of 1965, s. 3]
     Amendment of section 21.--In section 21 of the principal Act, in sub-section (1), in clause (a), for the words "twenty thousand rupees", the words "fifty thousand rupees" shall be substituted.
         [Vide Assam Act 7 of 1993, s. 3]
         Uttar Pradesh
     Amendment of section 21 of Act XII of 1887.--In section 21 of the Bengal, Agra and Assam Civil Courts Act, 1887, as amended in its application to Uttar Pradesh (hereinafter referred to as the Bengal, Agra and Assam Civil Courts Act), for sub-section (1), the following sub-section shall be substituted, namely :--
    "(1) Save as aforesaid, an appeal from a decree or order of a Civil Judge shall lie--
     (a) to the District Judge where the value of the original suit in which or in any proceeding arising out of which, the decree or order was made, whether instituted or commenced or decided before or after the commencement of the Uttar Pradesh Civil Laws Amendment Act, 1968, was less than twenty thousand rupees; and
     (b) to the High Court, in any other case.
     (I-A) An appeal from a decree or order of a Civil Judge where the value of the original suit in which, or in any proceeding arising out of which, the decree or order was made exceeded ten thousand rupees but was less than twenty thousand rupees instituted in the High Court before the date of commencement of the Uttar Pradesh Civil Laws Amendment Act, 1970 and pending in the High Court immediately before the said date, not being an appeal in which arguments have been concluded before the said date and only judgement disposing of the appeal remains to be pronounced, shall stand transferred to the District Judge having jurisdiction who may either decide it himself or assign it to any Additional Judge subordinate to him.
     (I-B) The period of limitation prescribed for filing an appeal from a decree or order of a Civil Judge where the value of the original suit in which, or in any proceeding arising out of which, the decree or order was made exceeded ten thousand rupees but was less than twenty thousand rupees and the decree or order was made before December 2, 1968, shall notwithstanding anything in the Limitation Act, 1963, be deemed to be and always to have been the same as if the appeal continued to lie to the High Court."
         [Vide Uttar Pradesh Act 14 of 1970, s. 4]
    Uttar Pradesh
     Amendment of section 21--In section 21 of the principal Act,--
     (a) for sub-sections (1), (1-A) and (1-B), the following sub-sections shall be substituted, namely :--
     (1) Save as aforesaid an appeal from a decree or order of a Civil Judge shall lie,-
     (a) to the High Court in any case other than a case referred to in clause (b) ;
     (b) to the District Judge where the value of the original suit in which or in any proceeding arising out of which the decree or order was made (either instituted or commenced before or after the relevant date) did not exceed one lakh rupees or such higher amount not exceeding five lakh rupees as the High Court may fix from time to time by notification in the official Gazette.
     Explanation-- For the purposes of this sub-section and sub-section (1-A) and (1-B) relevant date means the date of commencement of the Uttar Pradesh Civil Laws (Amendment) Act, 1991 or, as the case may be, the date of commencement of notification made under clause (b) of sub-section (1).
     (1-A) An appeal, from a decree or order of a Civil Judge where the value of the original suit in which, or in any proceeding arising out of which the decree or order was made was not more than amount fixed by or under clause (b) of subsection (1) instituted in High Court and pending in the High Court immediately before the relevant date, shall stand transferred to the District judge having jurisdiction who may either decide it himself or assign it to any additional Judge subordinate to him :
     Provided that any judgment, decree or order passed in such an appeal by the High Court after the relevant date shall be valid as if the High Court had withdrawn the appeal under section 24 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908.
     (1-B) The period of limitation prescribed for filing an appeal from a decree or order of a Civil Judge made before the relevant date, which lay to the High Court immediately before such date but lies to the District Judge under subsection (1) shall not withstanding anything to the contrary contained in the Limitation Act, 1963, be deemed to be and always to have been the same as if the appeal continued to lieto the High Court.";
     (b) in sub-section (4), the words "with the previous sanction of the State Government,' shall be omitted.
         [Vide Uttar Pradesh Act 17 of 1991, s. 4]
     Amendment of section 21.In section 21 of the principal Act, in sub-section (1), in clause (b),-
     (a) for the words "one lakh rupees" the words "five lakh rupees" shall be substituted; and
     (b) for the words "five lakh rupees" the words "twenty-five lakh rupees" shall be substituted.
         [VideUttar Pradesh Act 14 of 2015, s. 3]
         Bihar
Amendment of Section 21 of Act XII of 1887.--In clause (a) of sub-section (1) of Section 21 of the Bengal, Agra & Assam Civil Courts Act, 1887 (XII of 1887), for the words "did not exceed five thousand rupees", the word "was less than ten thousand rupees" shall be substituted.
         [Vide Bihar Act 1959, s. 2]
     Amendment of section 21 of Act 12 of 1887.--In the Bengal, Agra and Assam Civil Courts Act, 1887 (Act 12 of 1887) clause (a) of sub-section (1) of section 21 for the words "sixty thousand" the words "two lakhs" shall be substituted.
         [Vide Bihar Act 19 of 1996, s. 2]
     Amendment in section 21 of the Act, 12 of 1887.--In the said act in Clause (a) of sub-section (1) of section-21 the words "Two lacs rupees" shall be substituted by the number, bracket and words "rupees 10,000/-(rupees Ten lacs)"
         [Vide Bihar Act 14 of 2014, s. 5]
     Amendment in section 21 of Act 12 of 1887.--In section (a) of sub-section (1) of Section 21 of the said Act of the words "ten thousand" the words "sixty thousand" shall be substituted.
         [Vide Bihar Act 19 of 1987, s. 3]
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