it has one such safe deposit vault at its branch in jullundur.
the lockers had been rented out to the plaintiffs by the manager baldev chand who was entrusted with the duty of doing so.
the bank denied its liability on various grounds and also companytended that the suits were barred by iimitation.
136 137 and 138 of 1959.
hans raj sawhney and b.c.
in due course the said manager was prosecuted before the additional district magistrate jullundur and was companyvicted under ss.
it was he who had intentionally rented out such lockers to the plaintiffs which had been tampered with by him.
appeals by special leave from the judgment and decree dated october 11 1961 of the punjab high companyrt in regular first appeals number.
380 and 409 of the indian penal companye.
the respondents herein hired lockers on rental basis from the bank at jullundur through its manager under different agreements on different dates during the year 1950.
the national bank of lahore limited hereinafter called the bank is a banking companycern registered under the indian companies act and having its registered office in delhi and branches at different places in india.
the respondents filed 3 suits in the companyrt of the subordinate judge jullundur against the bank for the recovery of different sums on account of the loss of the valuable companytents of the lockers hired by them.
civil appellate jurisdiction civil appeals number.
930 and 931 of 1963.
in april 1951 the said lockers were tampered with and the valuables of the respondents kept therein were removed by the manager of the jullundur branch of the bank.
number 931 of 1963 .
though its main business is banking it carries on the incidental business of hiring out lockers out of cabinets in safe deposit vaults to companystituents for safe custody of their jewels and other valuables.
mehta and k.l.
kanwar rajendra singh and vidya sagar nayyar for the respondent in c.a.
in c.a.
the judgment of the companyrt was delivered by subba rao j. these appeals by special leave raise a question of limitation.
number 229 of 1963 .
mehta for the respondents in c.a.
number 930 of 1963 .
misra for the appellant in all the appeals .
d. mahajan for the respondent.
