Thereafter, the Petitioner issued a cheque for a sum of Rs.3,50,000/ dated 11th October, 2006, towards part payment of the said dues which, according to the Respondent, was signed by one Pyare Lal, the sole proprietor of the Petitioner firm.
On account of business transactions, the Petitioner purchased iron sheets on credit from the Respondent on account whereof a sum of Rs.4,42,724/ became due and payable by the Petitioner to the Respondent.
Since, despite such numberice the Petitioner failed to pay the said dues, the Respondent filed Suit No.57 of 2008 in the Court of District and Sessions Judge, Delhi, under Order XXXVII Rules 1 and 2 C.P.C. The Petitioner entered appearance in the Suit and filed an application under Order XXXVII Rule 3 C.P.C., which was dismissed, as mentioned hereinabove.
Furthermore, the said cheque was issued by the Petitioner on 11th October, 2000, but the date of the cheque was, thereafter, interpolated and altered from 11.10.2000 to 11.10.2006, and presented to the Bank.
In the said application, it was also denied that any cheque of such a large amount had been issued to the Respondent after 1992 in order to bolster the case of the Petitioner that the cheque in question had been forged.
The Petitioner settled the accounts and acknowledged the liability in respect of the said amount.
In the said application for leave to defend the suit, the Petitioner companytended that the cheque in question had been handed over by the Petitioner to the Respondent firm by way of security only and number for presentation.
On presentation, the said cheque was dishonoured and a legal numberice was, therefore, sent by the Respondent to the Petitioner for payment of the outstanding dues.
ALTAMAS KABIR, J. The short point involved in this Special Leave Petition is whether the learned District and Sessions Judge, Delhi, had rightly dismissed the Petitioners application under Order XXXVII Rule 3, read with Section 151 of the Code of Civil Procedure C.P.C. for leave to defend the suit filed by the Respondent under Order XXXVII for recovery of Rs.6,68,513/ , together with interest 18 per annum and pendente lite and future interest.
