IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
CWJC No.2714 of 2011
BHOLA NATH ROY SON OF LATE RADHA KISHNA RAI,
R/O VILLAGE BAKHERPUR, P.S. PIRPAINTY, DISTRICT
BHAGALPUR............................................PETITIONER.
Versus
1. THE STATE OF BIHAR THROUGH DISTRICT MAGISTRATE,
BHAGALPUR.
2. THE CERTIFICATE OFFICER, BHAGALPUR.
3. U.CO. BANK, PYALAPUR BRANCH, PIRPAINTY,
BHAGALPUR THROUGH BRANCH MANAGER.
4. THE BRANCH MANAGER, U.CO. BANK, PYALAPUR
BRANCH, PIRPAINTY, BHAGALPUR........RESPONDENTS.
For the petitioner :Mr. Gopal Prasad Roy, Advocate.
For the State :Mr. Prashant Sinha, AC to GP-1
For the Bank :Mrs. Nilu Agrawal, Advocate.
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03/ 25.03.2011 Heard learned counsel for the petitioner, learned counsel
for the State of Bihar and learned counsel for the U.Co.Bank.
2. This writ petition has been filed by the petitioner
challenging order dated 13.06.2007 passed by Certificate Officer,
Bhagalpur (respondent no.2) in Certificate Case No.15 of 2006-07
issuing Warrant of Arrest and also for direction to the said
respondent to dispose of the objection of the petitioner dated
20.03.2007 and for other ancillary reliefs.
3. Short substance of the matter is that notice under
section 7 of the Bihar and Orissa Demand Recovery Act, 1914
(hereafter referred to as the Act for the sake of brevity) was issued
by the Certificate Officer on the petitioner as certificate debtor,
whereafter the petitioner filed his reply denying his liability under
section 9 of the Act. The petitioner has annexed entire order sheet of
the aforesaid Certificate Case No.15 of 2006-07 which shows that
the said objection was never decided and in the meantime order
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dated 13.06.2007 was passed issuing Warrant of Arrest against the
petitioner.
4. This appears against the specific provisions of law as it
was the duty of the said authority to first decide the objection under
section 9 of the Act after hearing under section 10 of the Act and
only thereafter such steps for issuance of Warrant of Arrest etc.
could have been legally taken.
5. In the said circumstances, the impugned order dated
13.06.2007 passed in Certificate Case No.15 of 2006-07 issuing
Warrant of Arrest against the petitioner is hereby quashed and the
Certificate Officer, Bhagalpur (respondent no.2) is directed to
proceed with Certificate Case No.15 of 2006-07 and take
appropriate steps against the petitioner in accordance with law only
after passing an order under section 10 of the Act deciding the
objection filed by the petitioner under section 9 of the Act. The
petitioner must appear in the said proceeding on each and every date
fixed by Certificate Officer, Bhagalpur (respondent no.2). It may be
noted that this court has not considered the legality or otherwise of
the objection filed by the petitioner.
6. This writ petition is disposed of with the aforesaid
directions/observations.
Harish (S.N. Hussain, J.)