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TMI Blog2016 (2) TMI 1337X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... uty of the High Court to have decided the appeal keeping in view the powers conferred on it by the statute - appeal allowed in part. X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... igh Court exercising its first appellate powers under Section 173 of the M.V. Act to have dealt with all the submissions urged by the Appellant-Corporation and after appreciating the entire evidence should have come to its own conclusion one way or the other keeping in view the legal principles governing the issues. It was urged that since it was not done by the High Court, a jurisdictional error is committed by the High Court which renders the impugned judgment legally unsustainable. Lastly, the learned Counsel urged that if his arguments are accepted, the remand of the case to the High Court to decide the appeal afresh on merits is inevitable. 12. Learned Counsel for the Respondents, however, supported the impugned order and urged that it does not call for any interference. 13. Having heard the learned Counsel for the parties and on perusal of the record of the case, we find force in the submission of the learned Counsel for the Appellant-Corporation. 14. The powers of the first appellate Court while deciding the first appeal are indeed well defined by various judicial pronouncements of this Court and are, therefore, no more res integra. 15. As far back in 1969, the learned J ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... te court must come into close quarters with the reasoning assigned by the trial court and then assign its own reasons for arriving at a different finding. This would satisfy the court hearing a further appeal that the first appellate court had discharged the duty expected of it.... 19. The above view was followed by a three-Judge Bench decision of this Court in Madhukar and Ors. v. Sangram and Ors. (2001) 4 SCC 756, wherein it was reiterated that sitting as a court of first appeal, it is the duty of the High Court to deal with all the issues and the evidence led by the parties before recording its findings. 20. In H.K.N. Swami v. Irshad Basith (2005) 10 SCC 243, this Court (at p. 244) stated as under: (SCC para 3) 3. The first appeal has to be decided on facts as well as on law. In the first appeal parties have the right to be heard both on questions of law as also on facts and the first appellate court is required to address itself to all issues and decide the case by giving reasons. Unfortunately, the High Court, in the present case has not recorded any finding either on facts or on law. Sitting as the first appellate court it was the duty of the High Court to deal with all t ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... first appellate court. In our view, the judgment under appeal is cryptic and none of the relevant aspects have even been noticed. The appeal has been decided in an unsatisfactory manner. Our careful perusal of the judgment in the regular first appeal shows that it falls short of considerations which are expected from the court of first appeal. Accordingly, without going into the merits of the claim of both parties, we set aside the impugned judgment and decree of the High Court and remand the regular first appeal to the High Court for its fresh disposal in accordance with law. 23. The aforementioned cases were relied upon by this Court while reiterating the same principle in State Bank of India and Anr. v. Emmsons International Ltd. and Anr. (2011) 12 SCC 174. 24. An appeal under Section 173 of the M.V. Act is essentially in the nature of first appeal alike Section 96 of the Code and, therefore, the High Court is equally under legal obligation to decide all issues arising in the case both on facts and law after appreciating the entire evidence. [See National Insurance Co. Ltd. v. Naresh Kumar and Ors. ((2000) 10 SCC 198 and State of Punjab and Anr. v. Navdeep Kaur and Ors. (2004) ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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