Chapter IV NO TITLE

Every suit under this Act shall be instituted by presenting a plaint to the village munsif together with as many copies thereof as there are defendants.

Particulars to be contained in plaint The plaint shall be written in the language of the village and signed by the plaintiff, or, in his absence, by an agent duly authorized by him, and it shall contain the following particulars :-

1. (a) The name, description and residence of the plaintiff and defendant.
2. (b) A concise statement of the cause of action and when it arose.
3. (c) The relief prayed for, and the total amount or value of the claim.

[No legal practitioner, whether qualified or unqualified, shall be allowed to appear before a village court on behalf of any party to a suit or proceeding but any party may authorize a servant, gumasta, partner, relation or friend to appear and plead for him : Provided that] it shall be competent to the village munsif, whenever he thinks it necessary for the ends of justice, to order the personal attendance of any of the parties to the suit; and if the party so ordered does not attend in person, he shall be subject to the same consequences as if he did not appear either in person or by an agent.

When the plaint has been duly presented, the village munsif shall cause the same to be registered, and shall, by a summons in writing, require the defendant to appear and answer the claim on a specified day. The summons shall be served on the defendant personally [and his signature taken thereon] and a copy thereof delivered to him by the village servant usually employed in carrying messages, or by any other person appointed by the Collector under section 12.

If the village munsif is satisfied that the defendant is evading service of the summons, [or has refused to affix his signature to the summons], the village munsif may order that it be served upon, and a copy thereof delivered to, an adult male member of the family of the defendant residing with him, or that a copy thereof be affixed upon some conspicuous part of the house in which he generally resides.

Whenever it may be necessary to serve the summons upon a defendant beyond the local jurisdiction of the village court, it shall be forwarded to the District Munsif, who shall cause it to be served as if it had been a summons issued by himself, and shall then return it to the village court together with a report of such service.

Procedure if defendant does not appear : defendant can claim two days’ notice of suit If a defendant does not appear in person or by agent on the day fixed, and it be proved that the summons was duly served, the village court may proceed ex parte. If it is not proved that the summons was duly served, the village munsif shall issue a fresh summons. Every defendant may claim two clear days' notice of suit, and if the summons was not served in sufficient time to enable him to answer on the day fixed, the hearing shall be adjourned to a future day, of which written notice shall be given to defendant.

Every summons served under this Act otherwise than by the village servant shall be served at the expense of the party on whose behalf it is issued.

If on the day fixed for the defendant to appear-

1. (1) neither party appears, or
2. (2) the plaintiff does not appear and the defendant appears and does not admit the claim, or
3. (3) the summons has not been served owing to the plaintiff's default and the defendant does not appear, the suit shall be dismissed unless the village court otherwise directs.

If the plaintiff does not appear, but the defendant appears and admits the claim wholly or in part, the village court shall pass judgment against defendant in accordance with such admission, provided that when only a part of the claim is admitted, the court may adjourn the hearing to a future day.

Whenever a suit is dismissed under clause

1. (1) or clause
2. (3) of section 30, the plaintiff may [subject to the law of limitation] bring a fresh suit; and if within thirty days from the date of an order under clause
3. (2) of section 30 dismissing the suit, or of a decree passed for only a part of the claim under section 31, the plaintiff satisfies the village court that he was prevented by any sufficient cause from appearing, the court shall set aside the dismissal or the decree, and shall appoint a day for proceeding with the suit.

Any defendant against whom a decree has been passed ex parte may, within thirty days from the date of executing any process for its enforcement, apply to the village court to set it aside; and if satisfied that the summons or notice was not duly served, or that the defendant was prevented by any sufficient cause from appearing, the court shall set aside the decree and shall appoint a day for proceeding with the suit.

No decree shall be set aside on any application under section 32 or section 33 unless notice has been served on the opposite party.