TMI Blog1942 (8) TMI 13X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ) came into force. By this Act, Section 20 of Act 7 of 1936 was amended by inserting therein the following words: or I whether a liability is a debt or not before the words the Board shall decide the matter. On 24th August 1940 the respondents objected to the order of stay made by the Munsif on 26th June 1940 on the ground, that the appellants' liability under the decree was not a debt within the meaning of Act 7 of 1936 and consequently the Debt Settlement Board had no jurisdiction to issue notice under Section 34 of Act 7 of 1936. The Munsif held that the appellant's liability under the decree was not a debt as defined in Act 7 of 1936. He accordingly vacated the stay order. This order of the Munsif has been affirmed by the Fi ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... of the Act wag also issued before that date. We do not think, therefore, that the provisions of the amended Act are at all attracted to the fact of the present case. Any way, it is not necessary to discuss the matter further as the rule that has been granted in this case, is not an open rule, but is expressly limited to grounds 1 and 2 of the petition neither of which covers the present point. 3. These observations of the learned Judge are obiter dicta. It is a general rule that when the Legislature alters the rights of parties by taking away or conferring any right of action, its enactments, unless in ' express terms they apply to pending actions, do not affect them. But there is an exception to this rule, namely, where enactment ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... said Act The amending Act, therefore, has not touched the substantive rights of the parties under Act 7 of 1936. It simply lays down in what tribunal the dispute between the parties as to whether a particular liability is or is not a debt within the meaning of Act 7 of 1936 is to be determined. It simply changes the forum. It lays down that the dispute is to be settled by the Debt Settlement Board and not by the civil Court. The provisions of the amending Act relating to this change of forum are, therefore, simply matters of procedure and are attracted to the facts of the present case. The Munsif, therefore, had no jurisdiction to determine whether the appellants' liability under the decree is a debt within the meaning of Act 7 of 1936 ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
|
