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8. The respondent No. 11 (A.R. Sridharan) has more or less raised the same objection, but additionally urged that the material facts were not brought to the notice of the DRT, namely, that the ancestors of respondent Nos. 11 (A.R. Sridharan) and 12 (A.R. Kannan) were the owners and in possession of land to the extent of 1.80 acres at Adampakkam Village at old Survey, which was known as Paimash No. 722/4. The factum of ownership of the respondent Nos. 11 and 12 has been decided in O.A. Suit No. 186/1976, filed by their father and after his demise, the same was pursued by them. The suit was decreed in their favour in respect of 1.80 acres land at Paimash No. 722/4 and which decree had attained finality by dismissal of special leave petition by this Court on 11.5.1992 in view of the concurrent decisions of the trial Court dated 16.2.1990, of the first appellate Court dated 3.1.1992 and of the High Court in Second Appeal dated 6.4.1992. Besides the civil proceedings which have attained finality, reliance is also placed on criminal proceedings making reference to the stated property (Paimash No. 722/4). Notwithstanding this position, it is urged by the respondent No. 11 (A.R. Sridharan) that the sale certificate issued by the Bank refers to land admeasuring 1.80 acres bearing Paimash No. 722/4, which cannot be countenanced. He stoutly urged that land bearing Paimash No. 722/4 admeasuring 1.80 acres was not and could not have been made the subject matter of mortgage in favour of the Bank, as the guarantor had no title whatsoever qua that property when mortgage was created by it. Thus, besides praying for dismissal of the appeal, he has prayed that it be clarified that the mortgage and the sale certificate could not have and had not included the property bearing Paimash No. 722/4 admeasuring 1.80 acres, and for directing that all proceedings conducted in whichever Court/forum must proceed on the basis that sale certificate issued by the Bank is subject to the decree in favour of the respondent No. 11 dated 16.2.1990 in O.S. No. 186/1976.

16. The next question is: whether despite the decree of a Court of competent jurisdiction in favour of respondent No. 11 (A.R. Sridharan) concerning land bearing Paimash No. 722/4 admeasuring 1.80 acres, can the documents pertaining to that land be still made over to the appellant/auction purchaser, merely because sale certificate has been issued by the Bank in that regard? The sale certificate, as issued by the Bank, does make reference to land bearing survey No. 282, which inter alia, consists of old Paimash No. 722/4. Therefore, to the extent of land referred to in the decree dated 16.2.1990 passed by the Court of District Munsiff, Chengalpattu in O.S. No. 186/1976 in favour of the respondent No. 11 (A.R. Sridharan), despite the issuance of sale certificate, the title document in respect of old Paimash No. 722/4 ought not to be released until the final decision in O.A. No. 11/2008. We say so because the decree passed by the Court of competent jurisdiction, which had attained finality with the dismissal of the special leave petition by this Court on 11.5.1992 cannot be disregarded. The fact that other proceedings, including about the title in respect of land admeasuring 1.80 acres bearing Paimash No. 722/4 are pending between the parties, cannot be the basis to overlook the claim of the respondent No. 11 (A.R. Sridharan) until a Court of competent jurisdiction declares that the respondent No. 11 (A.R. Sridharan) had no subsisting right, title or interest in that property.

20. Although we are inclined to reverse the impugned decision of the High Court, however, for the nature of controversy brought before us, it may be appropriate to modify the operative order of the DRAT to the effect that the application filed by the Bank being I.A. No. 995/2017 in O.A. No. 11/2008 is partly allowed by ordering return of the original documents, except in respect of the land bearing Paimash No. 722/4 admeasuring 1.80 acres being subject matter of decree in O.S. No. 186/1976. This arrangement will meet the ends of justice in the facts of the present case.