Winding-up petition affidavits must be sworn by a principal officer; an authorised attorney alone is usually insufficient.

Rule 30 of the Companies (Winding-up) Rules, 1949 was construed strictly: an affidavit verifying a winding-up petition must ordinarily be sworn by a director, secretary, or other principal officer of the company. An authorised attorney, even if empowered by a power of attorney to present petitions and swear affidavits, does not thereby become a principal officer for this purpose. The article notes that only exceptional circumstances may justify departure from the rule, because literal compliance allows easy verification in winding-up proceedings. Accordingly, an affidavit sworn by a non-officer attorney is not sufficient compliance with rule 30 unless the required officer status is shown.

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Issues: Whether an affidavit verifying a winding-up petition, sworn by an authorised attorney who was not shown to be a director, secretary, or other principal officer of the company, complied with rule 30 of the Companies (Winding-up) Rules, 1949.

Analysis: Rule 30 was construed strictly in relation to the capacity of the deponent. Although section 455 of the Companies Act, 1948 made a manager an officer of the company, that did not establish that the deponent was a principal officer. The fact that the company had executed a power of attorney authorising the deponent to present petitions and swear affidavits did not convert him into a principal officer for the purposes of the rule. The rule could be departed from only in exceptional circumstances, and the court preferred adherence to its literal terms so that compliance could be readily verified in winding-up proceedings.

Conclusion: The affidavit did not satisfy rule 30, and the court would not treat it as sufficient support for the petition on that basis alone.

Final Conclusion: The petition could proceed only on the basis of a fresh affidavit sworn by a director, secretary, or principal officer, so the court granted relief in a qualified form rather than accepting the impugned affidavit as valid compliance.

Ratio Decidendi: In winding-up proceedings, an affidavit verifying a corporate petition must ordinarily be sworn by a director, secretary, or other principal officer of the company, and an authorised attorney who is not shown to hold that status does not satisfy the rule except in exceptional circumstances.

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