Calcutta High Court (Appellete Side)
Ct. 8 vs Branch Manager on 22 July, 2022
SAT 262 of 2014
Item-14.
22-07-2022
Sankar Nath @ Sankar Narayan Chakrabarty & Ors.
sg
Ct. 8 Versus
Branch Manager, State Bank of India,
Krishnagar Main Branch
Mr. Soumyadeep Biswas, Adv.
...for the appellants
Ms. Deblina Lahiri, Adv.
Ms. Teresa Chetri, Adv.
...for the respondent
By consent of the parties, the appeal is taken up for hearing
and disposed of by this order.
Technicalities must not stand on the way in moulding reliefs
and converting a proceeding to one for Letter of Administration as
it appears to Court that the appellants are entitled to a relief. The
appellants are all the legal heirs of Sandhya Chakraborty, since
deceased. They were ill advised to file a suit for declaration
notwithstanding the fact that they had obtained a succession
certificate for the purpose of operation of the locker they should
have applied for the Letters of Administration. Indeed, the circular
of the bank dated 20th January, 2022 require any person for the
purpose of operation of the locker to obtain a Letter of
Administration from a competent Court. Similar circular to that
effect were in existence when the suit was heard and disposed of
by the learned Trial Court.
The learned Counsel for the State Bank of India has very
fairly submitted that in spite of the succession certificate, the bank
is bound by its circular and the judgment of our Division Bench in
State Bank of India versus Netai Ch. Porel reported in 1982 AIR
(Calcutta) 92, where it has been specifically held that the
succession certificate would not be the required documents for the
purpose of operation of the locker to that extent as the learned
Trial Judge had relied upon the said decision of our Division
Bench. However, learned Trial Judge could have converted the
proceeding to a proceeding for Letters of Administration having
regard to the fact that there was no dispute with regard to the
status of the parties and in the suit they have also prayed for
operation of the locker.
The Trial Court has recorded that the plaintiffs are the legal
heirs of the deceased but could not allow the said prayer for
operation of the locker in the said proceeding and no such specific
prayer was made.
To do complete justice to the parties, we convert the suit to a
proceeding of Letters of Administration and on the basis of the
evidence on record, we grant Letters of Administration in favour
of the plaintiffs. Access may be given jointly to the plaintiffs to
the locker of the deceased by the bank. There may not be any
requirement to file a separate proof of legal representation as
succession certificate has already been obtained by the appellants.
However, for the purpose of payment of court fees, bank
shall appoint any an empanelled Valuer for making inventory of
the ornaments and other valuable materials that may be inside the
locker and not presently known to the appellants, in presence of
the appellants and shall file a valuation report on the next date of
hearing. A copy of the said valuation report shall also be furnished
to the learned Advocate representing the appellants at least within
one week prior to the date fixed for further hearing, in order to
enable the learned Advocate for the appellants to take appropriate
steps for payment of deficit court fees, if any.
The matter shall appear under the heading "For Orders" as
part heard matter on 23rd August, 2022.
All costs, charges and expenses for making the inventory
and the Valuer's remuneration shall be borne by the appellants.
All the facts and evidence that were required to be
considered for the purpose of granting Letters of Administration
are on record and on the basis of the said evidence, the learned
Trial Court could have granted Letters of Administration by
converting the said proceeding considering the content without
going by form.
(Siddhartha Roy Chowdhury, J.) (Soumen Sen, J.)
