V. B. RANGARAJ v. V. B. GOPALAKRISHNAN AND ORS

Citation: [1991] SUPP. 3 S.C.R. 1

Court: Supreme Court of India

Bench: P.B. SAWANT, B.P. JEEVAN REDDY

Case summary

It is not in dispute that the Articles of Association of the company were not amended to bring them in conformity with the said agreement. The appeals filed by the first defendant and defendants 4'to 6 were dismissed.

Judgment text

The Judgment of the Court was delivered by SAWANT, J. These two appeals, Civil Appeal No. 1946 of 1980 filed by defendant 1 and Civil Appeal No. 1947 of 1980 filed by defendants 4 to 6, are against the decision dated February 8, 1980 of the Madras High Court. The main que~tion that falls for considerati. on in both the appeals is whether the shareholders can among themselves enter into an agreement which is contrary to or inconsistent with the Articles of Association of the company. 2, The third defendant is a private limited company which all along had a total shareholding of 50. Before the joint family of the plaintiffs and defendants came to hold all the 50 shares of the company, the family was a minority shareholder holding 13 shares, the rest 37 shares being held by . outsiders. In course of time, the family acquired the rest 37 shares and became the sole shareholder of the company.

The family consisted of ,, Baluswarny Naidu and Guruviah Naidu who were brothers; and each of the brothers held 25 shares in the company. The plaintiffs and defendants 1 avd 2 and one Selvaraj are the sons of Baluswamy Naidu and defendants 4 to 6 are the sons of Gurvviah Naidu. Baluswarny Naidu died on February 5, 1963 and Guruviah Naidu died on January 10, 1970. The plaintiffs alleged that in 1951 there was an oral agreement between Baluswamy Naidu and Guruviah Naidu that each of the branches of the family would always continue to hold equal. number of shares, viz. ; 25 and that if any member in either . of the branches wished to sell his share/shares, he would give the first option of purchase to-the members of that branch and only if the offer so made was not accepted, the shares would be sold to others.

Although on behalf of defendants, it was disputed that there was any such agreement entered into between the two brothers, the finding recorded by all the courts below is against the defendants. It is not in dispute that the Articles of Association of the company were not amended to bring them in conformity with the said agreement. Contrary to the said agreement, the first defendant, i. e. , son of Baluswamy Naidu sold the shares to defendants 4 to 6 who are the sons of Guruviah Naidu.

Hence the plaintiffs who are Baluswamy's sons filed the present suit for (i) a declaration that the said sale was void and not binding upon ihe plaintiffs and the second defendant (who is also the son of Baluswarny Naidu b~t was joined as a pro forma defendant) and for (ii) an " "' order directing defendants 1 and 4 to 6 to transfer the said shares to the >1 plaintiffs and the second defendant and for (iii) a permanent injunction restraining defendants 4 to 6 from applying for registering the said shares in their names andfrom acting adversely to the interests of the plaintiffs and the second defendant on the basis of the transfer of the said shares. . 3. The Trial Court decreed the suit by holding that the sale of the said shares was invalid and not binding on the plaintiffs and the second defendant, and directed both the first defendant and defendants 4 to 6 to transfer the said shares to the plaintiffs, and granted permanent injunction as prayed for.

The appeals filed by the first defendant and defendants 4'to 6 were dismissed. In the second appeals filed by them the High Court held that the courts below had proceeded on a wrong basis. According to the High Court the suit was in effect one to enforce the agreement providing for pre-emption and the court was entitled to mould the reliefs on the facts proved in the case and accordingly the High Court modified the deerec by directing substitution of the plaintiffs as shareholders in place of defendants 4 to 6. In other words, the High Court in terms held that (i) the sale of the shares by the first defondant in favour of defendants 4 to 6 was invalid and hence the plaintiffs· and the second defendant became entitled to purchase the said shares, (ii) the agreement was binding on the company, and (iii) the company was bound in law to register the said shares. in the plaintiffs' names. 4. Shri Parasaran appearing for defendants 4 to 6 in C. A. No.

1946 of 1980 contended that the agreement in effect imposed an additional restriction on the right to transfer the shares. The restriction was not envisaged by any of the Articles of Association. Hence it was not binding on any shareholder or a vendee of the shares from the shareholders. It was also unenforceable at law and, therefore, not binding on the company. Hence the sale of the shares by the first defendant to defendants 4 to 6 was not invalid and the High Court was wrong in directing the transfer of shares in favour of the plaintiff~. Shri Bhatt appearing for the first defendant (appellant in C. A. No. 1946 of 1980) contended that assuming that the sale of shares by the first defendant to defendants 4 to 6 was invalid in view of the agreement, the High Court could only have declared that the sale was invalid and it could not have further directed the transfer of shares in favour of plaintiffs. The first defendant could not be forced to sell the shares to the plaintiffs.

Shri Krishnamurthy, on the other hand, contended that (i) the shareholders were bound by the agreement of 1951; (ii) the agreement was entered into to maintain the ownership of the company in the family and to ensure that the two branches of the family had an equal shnre in the management and profits and losses of the company; (iii) there was nothing in the Articles of Association which prohibited such agreement and (iv) the two branches of the family being party to the agreement, it was enforceable against them, and the courts have done nothing more than to enforce the agreement 5. The basis of the judgment and decree of the High Court and of the judgments and decrees of the courts below is the alleged invalidity of the sale of the shares. It is therefore, necessary to understand the true position of law ' ~ in this behalf.

Section 3 (iii) of the Companies Act (hereinafter referred to as \ _ 'the Act') defines privpte company to mean a company which by its Articles, restricts the right to transfer its shares, if any, and limits the number of its shares to 50 (excepting employees and ex-employees who were and are members of the company) and prohibits any invitation to the public to subscribe for any shares in, or debentures of, the company. Section 26 of the Act provides that in the case of a private company limited by shares, such as the third defendant-company, there shall be registered with the Memorandum, Articles of Association signed by the subscribers of the Memorandum prescribing regulations for the company. Section 28 provides that the Articles of Association of a company limited by shares may adopt all or any of the regulations contained in Table A in Schedule I of the Act. Section 31 provides for alteration of the Articles by a special resolution of the company.

Section 36 states that when the Memorandum and Articles of Association arc registered, they bind the company and the members thereof. Section 39 provides for supply of the copies of Memorandum and Articles of Association to a member. Section 40 makes it mandatory to incorporate any changes in the Articles of Association in every copy of the Articles of Association. Section 82 defines the nature of shares and states that the shares or other interests of any member in a company shall be movable property transferable in the manner provided by the Articles of Association of the company. These provisions of the Act make itclear that the Articles of Association arc the regulations of the company binding on the company and its shareholders and that the shares are a movable property and their transfer is regulated by the Articles of Association of the company. 6.

Whether under the Companies Act or Transfer of Property Act, the shares arc, therefore, transferable like any other movable property. The only restriction on the transfer of the shares of a company . is as laid down in it ers equally or transferred to any new member with the consent of the majority of the members. It is, therefore, clear that even a new member can be admitted provided the majority of the members are agreeable to do so. It also appears from the word "nominee" that a living member has a right to nominate even a third party to succeed to him as a member on his death. Further the restriction on transfer by way of a right of pre-emption which is incorporated in the third part of the Article is only in respect of the shareholding of the deceased member and not of a (_ living member.

Whereas the heirs/nominees are as a matter of right entitled to become members if they are willing to do so, the restriction on the transfer of shares steps in only when they are unwilling to become members. The restriction states that in the latter event the shares of the deceased member shall be first distributed among the existing members equally and if they are to be transferred to any new member, it would be done so with the consent of the majority of the existing members. It may be noticed from this restriction, that firstly there is no limitation on the transfer of his shares by a living member either to the existing member or to a new member. The only condition is that when the transfer is made to a new member, it will have to be approved by the majority of the members. The transfer may be ·to any exi:;ting member whether he belongs to one or the other branch of the family and in such case there is no need of a consent of the majority of the members.

The Article in fact envisages the distribution of the shareholding of the deceased member (and not of the living member) equally among the members of both branches of the family and not-of any one of the branches only. Even the shares of the deceased member can be transferred to any new member when his heirs/nomfoees are not willing to become members. However, this can be done only with the consent of the majority of the members. 9. Hence, the private agreement which is relied upon by the plaintiffs whereunder there is a restriction on a living member to transfer his shareholding only to the branch of family to which he belongs in terms imposes two restrictions which are not stipulated in the Article. Firstly, it imposes a restriction on a living member to transfer the shares only to the existing members and secondly the transfer has to be only to a member belonging to the same branch of family.

The agreement obviously, therefore, imposes additional restrictions on the member's right to transfer his shares which are contrary to the provisions of the Article 13. They are, therefore, not binding either on the shareholders or on the company. In view of this legal position, the finding recorded by the courts below that the sale by the first defendant of his shares to defendants 4 to 6 is invalid as it is in breach of the agreement, A is erroneous in law. In view of our above finding, it is unnecessary to go inLo the question whether the High Court was justified in directing the transfer of shares by defendants 4 to 6 to the plaintiffs even if its finding that the sale was invalid was correct. In t! lc circumsLanccs, the appeals arc allowed, the decree of the High B Court is set aside and the plaintiffs' suit is dismissed with costs. G. N. Appeals allowed. ,:.. . r -