Section 80 CPC notice must be read reasonably as a whole; substantial identification of the plaintiff is enough.

Section 80 CPC notice is valid if read as a whole and, on a common-sense construction, it substantially identifies the person who will sue. The description of the plaintiff need not be technically exact where the notice, signature and surrounding recitals make clear that a proprietary concern is involved and the suit is brought by its proprietor. The provision's purpose is to give the Government a fair opportunity to examine and settle the claim before litigation, not to defeat claims through technical objections. On that basis, the notice was not defective on identity, the suit remained maintainable, and the dismissal was set aside with the trial decree restored.

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Issues: Whether a notice under Section 80 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 is invalid because the person described in the notice as the plaintiff is not expressed in the same precise form as the person who later instituted the suit.

Analysis: Section 80 requires that the notice state the name, description and place of residence of the plaintiff, but it is not to be construed in a pedantic manner divorced from common sense. The notice must be read as a whole to determine whether the recipient could reasonably identify the person who would sue. Where the notice, taken together with its signature and surrounding recitals, makes it clear that the concern is a proprietary concern and that the suit is brought by its proprietor, the purpose of the section is satisfied. The object of the provision is to give the Government an opportunity to examine the claim and settle it without litigation, not to use technicalities as traps against the claimant.

Conclusion: The notice was not defective on the ground of identity, and the suit was maintainable.

Final Conclusion: The appeal succeeded, the High Court's dismissal was set aside, and the trial court decree was restored.

Ratio Decidendi: A notice under Section 80 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 must be construed reasonably and as a whole, and it is valid if it substantially and clearly identifies the plaintiff, even if the form of description is not technically exact.

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