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Promoting Harmony
Daaman
All women exempted from paying court fees
Sanjay Kumar Das Vs Munmum Patnaik and others
Orissa HC
21/12/2018
C.M.P. No.1545 of 2018
About/from the judgment:
The High Court has held that a woman, irrespective of her status and nationality, is exempted from payment of court fee in Odisha Courts.
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The Plaintiff in this case (Sanjay Kumar Das vs. Munmum Patnaik), though is a domicile of the state, was a US Citizen. Her suit for declaration of title, partition and permanent injunction filed in a court in Odisha was valued at Rs.1, 11, 84,300. The defendant in the suit contended before the Trial Court that she is a citizen of USA since 1991 and that NRIs are not exempted from payment of court fees. The Trial Court rejected his application.
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Before the High Court, it was contended that, though the notification issued under Section 35 of the Court Fees Act, 1987 exempts women-plaintiffs from paying court fees, the instant plaintiff being an NRI, cannot invoke such an exemption.
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The notification, which was issued in the year 1995, exempts following persons from paying court fees
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• Member of Scheduled Castes
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• Member of Scheduled Tribes
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• Women
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• Minors
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• Persons with disabilities
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• Persons whose annual income does not exceed one lakh rupees,
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• Persons who are otherwise entitled to legal service under the Legal Service Authorities Act, 1987.
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Referring to this notification, Justice AK Rath observed: "Women are exempted from payment of court fees. The language of the notification is clear & explicit. The word 'woman' has not been pre-fixed by any adjective. It takes with its sweep the woman of any status or nationality. The Court cannot interpret the same in a manner which will defeat the purpose of the notification."
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The bench then upheld the Trial Court order observing that in view of the notification issued by the State, the plaintiff, who is a woman, is exempted from payment of court fee.
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