Petitioner was issued a notice by Assistant Registrar, nominee of Registrar, to appear and show cause as to why the amount of loan is not ordered to be recovered from the petitioner. It may be noticed that according to the petitioner, he has merely an Accountant of respondent No.4 and, as such Accountant, was operating the account of respondent No.4. According to the petitioner, if there is any loan, the same has to be repaid by respondent No.4. The Assistant Registrar concluded that petitioner obtained the loan in his own name and utilized the same and as such, was personally liable to repay the same.
He therefore decreed the claim on 6-12-1992 with interest to be paid as per agreement. Petitioner challenged this order by presenting an appeal to respondent No. 1, which was dismissed on 23-10- 1995, as not maintainable, in the absence of the petitioner/ his learned counsel. Petitioner's application for review was dismissed on 7-7-1997 as incompetent.
2. In this Constitutional petition it is contended that the appeal could not have been held as incompetent in the absence of the petitioner. On merits it is contended that petitioner is not liable.
The submissions are contested by both learned counsel for respondent No.4 and by learned Assistant Advocate-General, Punjab.
3. Learned counsel for the petitioner frankly admitted that the appeal did not lie to the Government but was competent only before the Registrar. The grievance, however, is that in his absence, the appeal could only have been dismissed for non-prosecution. In my judgment this is making mountain out of a' mere technicality. If the appeal was not, competent, petitioner's presence could not have made any difference. Admittedly there is no provision of review and this is also conceded by learned counsel. Even the findings on merits as recorded by Assistant Registrar, cannot be set aside. The learned Assistant Registrar has clearly held that the petitioner obtained the loan in his name and in his account and not in the account or respondent No.4.
4. This petition is without merit and is hereby dismissed with costs.