“18. In the facts of the present case, in our opinion, it would be inequitable to permit the plaintiffs to recover its unliquidated damages, provided he is able to prove the case at trial, without allowing the defendants to set-off the amounts outstanding on an old debt, provided the existence of the loan and the existence of still outstanding amounts can be sufficiently proved by the defendants at trial apart from the question of limitation 19. We are of the opinion that section 3 of the Limitation Act of 1963 does not relate to equitable set-offs at all. The most important distinction between a legal set-off as mentioned in the Code, and an equitable set-off as formulated by Judge made law, is that at the end of a suit, a legal set-off might result in a sum of money being paid to the defendants alone without the plaintiffs being held to be entitled to any recovery at all; but in the case of an equitable set-off, which is time-barred, this can never happen. Such an equitable set-off can only wipe off pro tanto the plaintiffs' claim. If the plaintiffs claim is not proved at all and if the defendants' barred equitable set-off is proved to the full extent, even then the defendants cannot claim a decree because the whole purpose why he was allowed to plead a barred equitable set-off was that it was inequitable to allow the plaintiff to recover, leaving the defendants equitable claims out of consideration altogether. If the plaintiff is recovering nothing, then nothing inequitable is done if the defendants equitable set-off is completely brushed off.”
