Punjab National Bank vs Sangita sinha on 6 March 2026

Order

Item No.37 06.03.2026 Present:- Punjab National Bank Vs Sangita Sinha Order with Signature •. . . .. Order No.31 None. Applicants Respondents Office action with date and. dated signature of parties when necessary. Counsel for the Applicant Counsel for the Respondent Mrs. Puja Bhupal and Ms. Shakshi Agarwal. Judgment is passed in RA/03/2022 and a copy of the Judgment is kept on record. Let the judgment be uploaded on website of the Tribunal and the Registry is directed to serve/send copy of this judgment to the parties free of cost. Record be consigned to the record room along with the judgment. (RAKES ATI TIWARI) Presiding Officer DRT-Siliguri Presiding Officer Debts Recovery Tribuna! Siliguri . -~ ,.:--: ,.f :; ' ~ < • 1-~

IN THE DEBTS RECOVERY TRIBUNAL, SILIGURI R.A. No.3/2022 (TOA/958/2017 arising out of O.A.No.621/2015

1. UNITED BANK OF INDIA, Pradhan Nagar Branch, Pradhan Nagar, Siliguri, Post Office and Police Station Pradhan Nagar, District Darjeeling, West Seng.al. ......................... R.A. Applicant Vs.

1. SMT. SANGITA SINHA @ SANGEETA SINHA, Wife of Sri Manash Sinha, Ananda Mohan Bose Road, Deshbandhupara, Siliguri, Post Office Siliguri Town, Police Station Siliguri, District Darjeeling, West Bengal, Pin - 734003.

2. SRI MANASH SINHA, Son of Late Jagadish Chandra Sinha, Ananda Mohan Bose Road, Deshbandhupara, Siliguri, Post Office Siliguri Town, Police Station Siliguri, District Darjeeling, West Bengal, Pin - 734003.

3. SRI NANDA KUMAR MAITY, Son of Late Nutu Bihari Maity, Milan Pally, Siliguri, Post Office Siliguri Bazar, Police Station Siliguri, District Darjeeling, West Bengal, Pin - 734005.

4. SRI GANESH DOVAL, Son of Late J.R. Doval, Toonha Busty, Gangaram Tea Estate, Post Office and Police Station Bagdogra, District Darjeeling, West Bengal, Pin - 734014. . ........ Opposite parties/defendants Counsel for the Applicants Mr. P. Joarder Counsel for the opposite parties/defendants Mr. Utpal Saha PRESIDING OFFICER: RAKESH PATI TIWARI Date of Judgment - 06.03.2026

JUDGMENT

filed by the RA. applicant (Bank) for restoration of T.O.A/958/2017 (OA/621/2015) and for issuance of Recovery Certificate for an amount of Rs. 50,46,230/- with interest calculated upto 31.05.2022 and further interest thereon @11.00% with monthly rests from 01.06.2022 till full realization of the entire dues amount. C'\

2. The case of the R.A. applicant in short is that the applicant bank filed TOA case being No. 958/2017 before this Tribunal for recovery of Rs. 36,54,661.94 (Rupees Thirty six lakhs fifty four thousand six hundred sixty one and paise ninety four) only with interest calculated upto 31.10.2015 and further interest from 01.11.2015 @11.00% per annum with monthly (contd/ ... 2)

rests till full realization of the entire balance and subsequently the said T.O.A has been settled before National Lok Adalat held on 08.02.2020, at this Hon'ble Tribunal at Rs. 34,00,000/- ( Thirty four Lakhs) only and this settled amount was required to be paid in five monthly installments of Rs. 6.00 lakhs from February, 2020 to June, 2020 and one installment of Rs. 4.00 lakhs including interest in the month of July, 2020, but the defendants failed to comply with the terms and conditions of the settlement held in Lok Adalat on 08.02.2020 and therefore the said settlement is automatically ceased. That as per one of the terms of the settlement, in the event of default of payments of the settled amount and/or part of any installments as stipulated case of non-payment of the instalment amount on its due date, the award of the Lok Adalat shall be treated as Recovery certificate and directly recovery proceeding shall be initiated by the applicant bank for the recovery of original claim amount and accordingly, the applicant bank prays for issuance of Recovery Certificate for Rs. 50,46,230/- (Rupees fifty lakhs forty six thousand two hundred and thirty) with interest calculated upto 31.05.2022 and further interest @11.00% per annum with monthly rests from 01.06.2022 against the defendants jointly and severally.

3. The defendants No.1 & 2 filed the written objection wherein it is stated inter-alia that the R.A. was filed without any cause of action against the answering defendants and it is ~ 'ifb barred by the principles of waiver, estoppels and acquiescence. Moreover, the instant R.A. , '? ,.,fD 0~,c~f.. R>~tr-ed by the law of limitation and it is liable to be dismissed on the ground that the RA. . ..('!\~~ ·\(..\~ ef:b'~ e~ ~\ ~eco~ r,.,i,, was filed after the lapse of 929 days and it was filed without any application of '(;f~'V:)\<i:> ':,~\'--:, condonation of delay. The contention of the defendants is that the defendant has made payment of the first instalment of Rs. 6.00 lacs as per Order of National Lok Adalat but from the month of March, 2020, Covid-19 started and mother of the defendant was also affected with corona who subsequently died. It has been pleaded by the defendants that although the defendant requested the Applicant Bank through a Letter dated 02.09.2022, for some time to make repayment of the remaining instalment and approached the Bank with settlement proposal but the Applicant Bank never appreciated the true intentions of the defendant rather harassed the defendant mentally. The plea of the defendants is that the applicant bank has also realized the amount laying with the Savings Bank Account at Punjab National Bank, Katwa Branch of Sri. Nanda Kumar Maity, subsequent to the Award of National Lok Adalat and the applicant Bank instead of adjusting the said amount of (contd/ ... 3)

Rs. 16, 13,916.03/- as well as Rs. 6,00,000/- has claimed imaginary amount of Rs.50,46,230/- in the instant R.A. According to the defendants the entire claim amount now stands as Rs.34,00,000/- out of which Rs. 6,00,000/- which was paid as per Order of National Lok Adalat at that time itself, plus Rs. 16, 13,916.03/-which has been realized from the Savings Bank Account at Punjab National Bank, Katwa Branch, of Sri. Nanda Kumar Maity, needs to be deducted and the remaining amount i.e. Rs. 11,86,083.97/- together with the interest to be determined by the Hon'ble Tribunal, may be the recoverable claim of the Applicant Bank and anything further may not be claimed.

4. Having heard the Ld. Counsel of both the parties and perused the record it transpires that O.A. case No. 621/2015 (TOA/958/2017) was filed by the applicant bank for the recovery of dues amount of Rs. 36,54,661.94 (Rupees Thirty six lakhs fifty four thousand six hundred sixty one and paise ninety four) only with interest calculated upto 31.10.2015 and further interest from 01.11.2015 @11.00% per annum with monthly rests. It also transpires that the O.A. case was settled before the National Lok Adalat held on 08.02.2020 in between the parties for an amount of Rs. 34.00 lakhs which was required to be paid by the end of July 2020 in six installments and to this effect a joint compromise petition was filed and on the basis of the consent of both the parties and considering the joint ~ ~mpromise petition award was prepared on dated 08.02.2020 and the O.A. case was e\ r,.?>\ . 6,~Q, ~ ~ <~posed of. <?\e':>~ c;o--ie \ ~\":> ~e ~r:f~ From perusal of joint compromise petition of the parties filed before the Bench of National \)~ Lok Adalat it transpires that it is specifically mentioned in para No.4 that in the event of default of payment of any part of the settled amount and/or part of any installments, the bank would be entitled to recover the entire amount as prayed for by the applicant bank in the original application.

6. Para 4 of the compromise petition is extracted here-in-below:- "4. That in the event of default of payment of any part of the settled amount and/or part of any installments as stipulated here-in- above and/or if there is any prejudice to the securities of the applicant bank and/or breach of any terms of settlement, the reliefs and concessions granted to the defendants shall stand withdrawn without any further reference to the defendants and the Ld. Tribunal will issue Recovery certificate for the entire amount as prayed for by the applicant bank in the Original Application on receiving the appropriate petition from the applicant bank in this regard and same shall be recoverable from the defendant/defendant(s) as per provisions laid down in the Recovery of Debts Due to Bank and Financial Institutions Act. 1993." (contd/ ... 4)

7. In case of Navratan Lal Sharma Vs Radha Mohan Sharma & Ors. [CIVIL APPEAL NO. 14328/2024 @ SLP (CIVIL) NO. 27723 OF 2024 decided on dated 12.12.2024], the Hon'ble Apex Court had held that in case of non-compliance of the term of settlement, the compromise will be considered void. It is pertinent to mention here that in the aforesaid case also (supra) the Hon'ble Supreme Court had noticed that in para 4 of the Compromise Deed it was mentioned that in case of non compliance the appeal would be restored.

8. DefendanUborrower has pleaded that there is delay of 929 days in filing the instant RA and even any condonation of delay has not been filed. It is pertinent to mention that it is not a new case rather due to non-fulfillment of the term of settlement secured creditor has been forced to file the application. Even if any petition would not have been filed then also in view of the term of settlement award of the Lok Adalat is a deemed decree and it can be enforced as a decree of a courUtribunal and for execution of a decree limitation is 12 years. So far the condonation of delay petition is concerned, the Hon'ble Supreme Court has held in case of Dwarika Prasad (Dead) through LRs Vs. Prithvi Raj Singh (SLP (C) No. 11259 of 2022 decided on dated 20.12.2024) that any separate condonation petition is not required where the application itself has all the ingredients of condonation of delay because the procedure cannot stand in the way of achieving just and fair outcome. Moreover in the instant matter any condonation of delay is not required.

9. Under the aforesaid facts and circumstances, RA filed by the applicant is hereby allowed and the T.O.A No. 958/2017 (OA/621/2015) is restored in view of para No. 4 of the joint compromise petition. 1 O. Let a Recovery Certificate be issued in favour of the applicant bank for Rs. 36,54,661.94 (Rupees Thirty six lakhs fifty four thousand six hundred sixty one and paise ninety four) only with interest calculated upto 31.10.2015 and further interest from 01.11.2015 @11.00% per annum with monthly rests till realization of the entire dues amount.

11. The Registry is directed to serve/send copy of this order to both the parties free of cost.

12. Let the order be uploaded on the website of the Tribunal. The judgment is signed and pronounced in the open Tribunal on 06th day of March, 2026. l<-fo/~ £.b_· "'7~ MtVo'"', (RAKESH PATI TIWARI) rl,. ~. ? t> Yo Presiding Officer ORT, Siliguri Presiding Officer D9bts Recovery Tribunal Siliguri