Karnataka High Court Rules Wife Can Testify for Plaintiff Without Power of Attorney under Section 120 of the Evidence Act
Case Title: Shashikala & Others And Laxman Yadu Kadam and Others
Case No: REGULAR SECOND APPEAL NO. 1832 OF 2005
Date of Order: 16-06-2023
CORAM: HON’BLE JUSTICE V SRISHANANDA
INTRODUCTION
The Karnataka High Court has ruled that the spouse of a plaintiff can provide testimony on behalf of the original plaintiff in a civil lawsuit, even if she doesn’t possess a power of attorney.
FACTS OF THE CASE
The trial court had rejected the case because the plaintiff himself did not testify, and instead, his wife testified using a power of attorney granted by her husband.
The appellants relied on a previous Supreme Court case (Janki Vashdeo Bhojwani and Another Vs. Indusind Bank Ltd. And others, 2005) which stated that a power of attorney allows the holder to “act” on behalf of the principal as per Order III Rules 1 and 2 CPC. However, the term “act” in these rules only pertains to actions performed within the authority of the power of attorney and does not include testifying in place of the principal.
Contrary to this, the High Court referred to Section 120 of the Indian Evidence Act and concluded that even without a power of attorney, the wife of the plaintiff (PW-1) could testify on his behalf. The court noted that a spouse can act as a competent witness even without a written authority. Even if the power of attorney given to the wife is considered invalid, Section 120 of the Indian Evidence Act allows her to testify on behalf of her husband.
COURT’S ANALYSIS
The court upheld the decision of the first Appellate Court, stating that it correctly granted the plaintiff’s claim. The appellants’ argument based on the Supreme Court judgment was rejected by the bench. The court explained that the circumstances of the present case, where the wife (PW-1) is competent to testify on behalf of her husband, make the principles outlined in the Janki Vashdeo Bhojwani case inapplicable.
As a result, the appeal was dismissed by the court.
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Written by- Shreya Sharma