Registrar must draw up Companies Act orders; office delay and certified-copy time are excluded from filing computation

Under the Companies Act, 1956, where the Companies (Court) Rules, 1959 place on the Registrar the duty to draw up orders, the litigant cannot be charged with office delay in preparing the order. Section 640A excludes both the time taken in drawing up the order and the time taken in obtaining the certified copy when computing the period for filing the order and related documents. The earlier original-side practice requiring a party to draft the order does not apply to orders governed by the Companies (Court) Rules, and no delay is attributable to the applicant.

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Issues: Whether, in proceedings under the Companies Act, 1956 on the original side of the Bombay High Court, the duty to draw up orders lies on the party or on the Registrar, and whether the time taken in drawing up the order is to be excluded while computing the period for filing the certified copy and memorandum under section 18.

Analysis: Section 640A of the Companies Act, 1956 excludes, for the purpose of filing an order with the Registrar, both the time taken in drawing up the order and the time taken in obtaining a certified copy. Rule 37 of the Companies (Court) Rules, 1959 provides that every order under the Companies Act is to be drawn up by the Registrar unless otherwise directed. In view of that rule, the earlier original-side practice requiring a party to draft the order did not govern orders under the Companies Act. The dual-system practice could not shift to the litigant a duty which the Companies (Court) Rules placed on the Registrar, and the party could not be prejudiced by office delay in drawing up the order.

Conclusion: The duty to draw up the order was on the Registrar, and the period taken in drawing up and obtaining the certified copy had to be excluded; there was no delay attributable to the applicant.

Ratio Decidendi: Where the Companies (Court) Rules cast on the Registrar the duty to draw up orders under the Companies Act, the litigant cannot be penalised for office delay, and the excluded time under section 640A must be computed by leaving out the period consumed in drawing up the order and obtaining the certified copy.

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