Full Judgment Text
* HIGH COURT OF DELHI : NEW DELHI
CM (M) No. 1064/2010 & CM No. 14828/2010 (stay)
th
% Judgment reserved on: 18 August, 2010
th
Judgment delivered on: 25 August, 2010
Sh. Harinder Singh,
S/o Shri Kuldeep Singh
R/o C-20, Fateh Nagar,
Tilak Nagar,
New Delhi
….Petitioner.
Through: Mr. Anand Prakash & Ms. Babita
Seth, Advocates.
Versus
1. Sh. Kuldeep Singh
S/o Late Sh. Karam Singh
R/o House No. 9, Road No. 13,
Punjabi Bagh Extn.
New Delhi- 110026
2. Vijaya Bank
(through its Manager)
Branch Office Kamla Nagar,
Delhi.
….Respondents
Through: None
Coram:
HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE V.B. GUPTA
1. Whether the Reporters of local papers may
be allowed to see the judgment? Yes
2. To be referred to Reporter or not? Yes
3. Whether the judgment should be reported
in the Digest? Yes
CM (M) No.1064/2010 Page 1 of 9
V.B.Gupta, J.
By way of present petition filed under Article 227 of the
th
Constitution of India, petitioner has challenged order dated 12 May, 2010
passed by Additional District Judge Delhi, vide which application of
petitioner filed under Order 9 Rule 7 read with section 151 of Code of Civil
Procedure (for short as „Code‟) was dismissed with costs of Rs.4,000/-.
2. Respondent herein, filed a suit for recovery of Rs.3,11,818/- along
with interest against the petitioner and respondent no.2. As per list of dates,
counsel for petitioner who had been appearing and contesting the case on
st
behalf of petitioner, did not appear in the matter on 21 August, 2007 and
th
as such case was adjourned to 27 September, 2007, on which date again
th
petitioner counsel did not appear. On the adjourned date, i.e. 30 October,
rd
2007, court was on leave and matter was adjourned to 3 November, 2007.
rd th
On 3 November 2007, the matter was adjourned for 7 January, 2008 and
again counsel for petitioner, did not appear on that day and as such,
petitioner was proceeded ex parte.
3. It is contended by learned counsel that petitioner came to know
th th
about ex parte order dated 7 January, 2008, only on 30 January, 2010,
when new counsel engaged by petitioner, inspected the case file. Earlier
counsel had assured the petitioner that he will appear and take care of the
CM (M) No.1064/2010 Page 2 of 9
case and call the petitioner as and when required. Thus, petitioner was
under bonafide impression and belief that counsel would inform him, as
and when required.
4. Other contention is that, the trial court did not adjudicate the
application filed under Section 5 of the Limitation Act and petitioner
cannot be penalized for non-appearance of his counsel.
5. Present petition has been filed under Article 227 of the Constitution
of India. It is well settled that jurisdiction of this Court under this Article is
limited.
6. In Waryam Singh and another vs. Amarnath and another, AIR
1954, SC 215, the court observed;
“This power of superintendence conferred by
Article 227 is, as pointed out by Harries, C.J., in –
„Dalmia Jain Airways Ltd. V. Sukumar Mukherjee‟,
AIR 1951 Cal 193 (SB) (B), to be exercised most
sparingly and only in appropriate cases in order to
keep the Subordinate Courts within the bounds of
their authority and not for correcting mere errors.”
7. In light of principles laid down in the above decision, it is to be seen
as to whether present petition under Article 227 of the Constitution of India
against impugned order is maintainable or not.
8. Order 9 Rule 7 of the Code read as under;
CM (M) No.1064/2010 Page 3 of 9
“7. Procedure where defendant appears on day of
adjourned hearing and assigns good cause for
previous non-appearance -
Where the Court has adjourned the hearing of the suit
ex parte, and the defendant, at or before such hearing,
appears and assigns good cause for his previous non-
appearance, he may, upon such terms as the Court
directs as to costs or otherwise, be heard in answer to
the suit as if he had appeared on the day fixed for his
appearance.”
9. As per above provision, petitioner has to show “good cause for his
previous non-appearance.” Recovery suit against petitioner was filed in the
year 2007. As per petitioner‟s own case, neither he nor his counsel
st
appeared in the Court on 21 August, 2007 and continuously thereafter, on
three dates. This, itself show that trial court has shown great indulgence in
favour of the petitioner, otherwise petitioner could have been proceeded ex
st
parte even on 21 August, 2007. Trial court after adjourning the matter
th
thrice, proceeded ex parte against petitioner only on 7 January, 2008.
Application for setting aside ex parte order, was filed in the year 2010.
10. In entire application, it is nowhere stated as to on which date
th
petitioner came to know about the passing of ex parte order dated 7
January, 2008. Only ground taken in the application is that, petitioner
th
engaged a new counsel who inspected the case file on 30 January, 2010
and then only petitioner came to know that he has been proceeded ex parte
th
on 7 January, 2008. Nowhere in the application it is stated as to what was
CM (M) No.1064/2010 Page 4 of 9
the occasion for petitioner to engage a new counsel and on which date new
counsel was engaged. Application is absolutely silent on these aspects.
th
11. Order sheet dated 7 January, 2008 shows that, even on last two
th
dates prior to 7 January, 2008, petitioner did not appear in court.
Petitioner has also filed an application under Section 151 of the Code for
production of certain documents. Filing of this application goes to show
th
that petitioner was well aware of the date of hearing as 7 January, 2008.
12. Present petitioner is a chronic litigant as in the list of dates it is
stated that, there are several cases filed by respondent no. 1 against
petitioner. This goes on to show that petitioner is well aware of the court
procedure and now he cannot take shelter under the garb that his counsel
advised him not to appear in the matter. Assuming for arguments sake, that
counsel for petitioner advised him not to appear in the court, then what was
the occasion for petitioner all of a sudden to engage a new counsel to
th
inspect the file on 30 January, 2010. It is also nowhere stated as to why
petitioner engaged a new counsel.
13. Trial court in impugned order observed;
“As matter of record on 7.1.08 the defendant was
proceeded ex parte for non appearance. Even on the
earlier occasion also the defendant has not appeared
in the court. Further proceedings reveal that
defendant no. 1 or his counsel did not appear in the
court till filing of the present application by defendant
CM (M) No.1064/2010 Page 5 of 9
no. 1 on 8.2.2010. Apparently, there is delay of
around two years in filing of the present application.
Defendant no. 1 might have engaged some other
counsel but as found earlier the defendant no. 1 has
not appeared in the court for long two years. The
explanation of the defendant that his counsel has
adviced him not to appear in the court does not inspire
the confidence of the court because the period of two
years is a big gap and further it is for the parties to be
vigilant and proceed with their matters so that their
interest is not defeated at any stage. The plea of
defendant no. 1 that his counsel has stopped appearing
in the court is found to be bald, bare and without any
basis. In case such application are entertained and
dealt with, it would amount to abuse to the process of
law. Accordingly, the application stands dismissed
with cost of Rs.4,000/- upon the defendant no.1.”
14. It is well settled that failure of lawyer to appear is necessarily not a
sufficient cause, conduct of parties has also to be seen. In ‘New Bank of
India Vs. M/s. Marvels (India) and Others ‟ 2001 VI AD (Delhi) 536 this
Court observed:
“There is no absolute proposition of law that all cases
of mistakes on the part of the advocate or pleader
would constitute sufficient cause. What is to be seen is
as to whether absence of the advocate was bonafide.
This is to be examined in conjunction with the conduct
of the party who had engaged advocate viz. whether he
was persuing his case diligently or the conduct and
approach was so callous that it amounted to
negligence. If this is so then non-appearance would
not be bonafide and it would not constitute sufficient
cause within the meaning of Order IX Rule 13 of the
Code of Civil Procedure.”
15. It was further observed:
CM (M) No.1064/2010 Page 6 of 9
“No doubt the words “sufficient cause” should receive
liberal construction so as to advance substantial
justice. However when it is found that the applicants
were most negligent in defending the case and their
non-action and want of bonafide are clearly imputable,
the Court would not help such a party. After all
“sufficient cause” is an elastic expression for which no
hard and fast guide-lines can be given and Court has to
decide on the facts of each case as to whether the
defendant who has suffered ex-parte decree has been
able to satisfactorily show sufficient cause for non-
appearance and in examining this aspect cumulative
effect of all the relevant factors is to be seen.”
16. Petitioner has taken the court proceedings in a very casual, careless
and negligent manner. Since, as per petitioner‟s own admission several
cases are pending between him and respondent no.1, he is not justified in
shifting the entire blame on his counsel.
17. In Indian Sewing Machines Co. Pvt. Ltd. Vs. Sansar Machine Ltd.
and Anr., 56 (1994) Delhi Law Times 45, it was observed;
“The question to be examined is whether the
responsibility of the defendants as a litigant comes to
an end merely by engaging a counsel and should not a
litigant show diligence on his part.”
18. In Ravinder Kaur Vs. Ashok Kumar and Anr., (2003) 8 Supreme
Court Cases 289, it has been laid down that;
“Courts of law should be careful enough to see through
such diabolical plans of the judgment debtors to deny
the decree holders the fruits of the decree obtained by
them. These type of errors on the part of the judicial
forums only encourage frivolous and cantankerous
CM (M) No.1064/2010 Page 7 of 9
litigations causing law‟s delay and bringing bad name
to the judicial system”.
19. In Salil Dutta v. T. M. and M. C. Private Ltd., (1993) 2 SCC 185,
the Court observed;
“The advocate is the agent of the party. His acts and
statements, made within the limits of authority given to
him, are the acts and statements of the principal i.e. the
party who engaged him. It is true that in certain
situations, the court may, in the interest of justice, set
aside a dismissal order or an ex parte decree
notwithstanding the negligence and/or misdemeanor of
the advocate where it finds that the client was an
innocent litigant but there is no such absolute rule that
a party can disown its advocate at any time and seek
relief. No such absolute immunity can be recognized.
Such an absolute rule would make the working of the
system extremely difficult.”
20. In view of above facts, no ambiguity or illegality can be found in the
impugned order. Present petition under Article 227 of the Constitution of
India is most bogus and friviolous one and same has been filed just to delay
the proceedings in a recovery suit, which was filed long back about six
years ago. Only motive of the petitioner is to delay the proceedings.
Petitioner even did not pay the costs of Rs. 4,000/- imposed upon him by
the trial court.
21. It is well settled that frivolous litigation clogs the wheels of justice
making it difficult for courts to provide easy and speedy justice to genuine
litigants. Those litigants who are in the habit of challenging each and every
CM (M) No.1064/2010 Page 8 of 9
order, even if the same is based on sound reasoning and goes on filling
frivolous application/petition, must be dealt with heavy hands.
22. Under these circumstances, present petition which is meritless,
bogus and most frivolous one, is hereby dismissed with costs of Rs.25,000/-
(Rupees Twenty Five Thousand Only).
23. Petitioner is directed to deposit the costs by way of cross cheque
with Registrar General of this court, within four weeks from today
th
24. List for compliance on 27 September, 2010.
CM No. 14828/2010 (stay)
25. Dismissed.
th
25 August, 2010 V.B.GUPTA, J.
ab
CM (M) No.1064/2010 Page 9 of 9
CM (M) No. 1064/2010 & CM No. 14828/2010 (stay)
th
% Judgment reserved on: 18 August, 2010
th
Judgment delivered on: 25 August, 2010
Sh. Harinder Singh,
S/o Shri Kuldeep Singh
R/o C-20, Fateh Nagar,
Tilak Nagar,
New Delhi
….Petitioner.
Through: Mr. Anand Prakash & Ms. Babita
Seth, Advocates.
Versus
1. Sh. Kuldeep Singh
S/o Late Sh. Karam Singh
R/o House No. 9, Road No. 13,
Punjabi Bagh Extn.
New Delhi- 110026
2. Vijaya Bank
(through its Manager)
Branch Office Kamla Nagar,
Delhi.
….Respondents
Through: None
Coram:
HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE V.B. GUPTA
1. Whether the Reporters of local papers may
be allowed to see the judgment? Yes
2. To be referred to Reporter or not? Yes
3. Whether the judgment should be reported
in the Digest? Yes
CM (M) No.1064/2010 Page 1 of 9
V.B.Gupta, J.
By way of present petition filed under Article 227 of the
th
Constitution of India, petitioner has challenged order dated 12 May, 2010
passed by Additional District Judge Delhi, vide which application of
petitioner filed under Order 9 Rule 7 read with section 151 of Code of Civil
Procedure (for short as „Code‟) was dismissed with costs of Rs.4,000/-.
2. Respondent herein, filed a suit for recovery of Rs.3,11,818/- along
with interest against the petitioner and respondent no.2. As per list of dates,
counsel for petitioner who had been appearing and contesting the case on
st
behalf of petitioner, did not appear in the matter on 21 August, 2007 and
th
as such case was adjourned to 27 September, 2007, on which date again
th
petitioner counsel did not appear. On the adjourned date, i.e. 30 October,
rd
2007, court was on leave and matter was adjourned to 3 November, 2007.
rd th
On 3 November 2007, the matter was adjourned for 7 January, 2008 and
again counsel for petitioner, did not appear on that day and as such,
petitioner was proceeded ex parte.
3. It is contended by learned counsel that petitioner came to know
th th
about ex parte order dated 7 January, 2008, only on 30 January, 2010,
when new counsel engaged by petitioner, inspected the case file. Earlier
counsel had assured the petitioner that he will appear and take care of the
CM (M) No.1064/2010 Page 2 of 9
case and call the petitioner as and when required. Thus, petitioner was
under bonafide impression and belief that counsel would inform him, as
and when required.
4. Other contention is that, the trial court did not adjudicate the
application filed under Section 5 of the Limitation Act and petitioner
cannot be penalized for non-appearance of his counsel.
5. Present petition has been filed under Article 227 of the Constitution
of India. It is well settled that jurisdiction of this Court under this Article is
limited.
6. In Waryam Singh and another vs. Amarnath and another, AIR
1954, SC 215, the court observed;
“This power of superintendence conferred by
Article 227 is, as pointed out by Harries, C.J., in –
„Dalmia Jain Airways Ltd. V. Sukumar Mukherjee‟,
AIR 1951 Cal 193 (SB) (B), to be exercised most
sparingly and only in appropriate cases in order to
keep the Subordinate Courts within the bounds of
their authority and not for correcting mere errors.”
7. In light of principles laid down in the above decision, it is to be seen
as to whether present petition under Article 227 of the Constitution of India
against impugned order is maintainable or not.
8. Order 9 Rule 7 of the Code read as under;
CM (M) No.1064/2010 Page 3 of 9
“7. Procedure where defendant appears on day of
adjourned hearing and assigns good cause for
previous non-appearance -
Where the Court has adjourned the hearing of the suit
ex parte, and the defendant, at or before such hearing,
appears and assigns good cause for his previous non-
appearance, he may, upon such terms as the Court
directs as to costs or otherwise, be heard in answer to
the suit as if he had appeared on the day fixed for his
appearance.”
9. As per above provision, petitioner has to show “good cause for his
previous non-appearance.” Recovery suit against petitioner was filed in the
year 2007. As per petitioner‟s own case, neither he nor his counsel
st
appeared in the Court on 21 August, 2007 and continuously thereafter, on
three dates. This, itself show that trial court has shown great indulgence in
favour of the petitioner, otherwise petitioner could have been proceeded ex
st
parte even on 21 August, 2007. Trial court after adjourning the matter
th
thrice, proceeded ex parte against petitioner only on 7 January, 2008.
Application for setting aside ex parte order, was filed in the year 2010.
10. In entire application, it is nowhere stated as to on which date
th
petitioner came to know about the passing of ex parte order dated 7
January, 2008. Only ground taken in the application is that, petitioner
th
engaged a new counsel who inspected the case file on 30 January, 2010
and then only petitioner came to know that he has been proceeded ex parte
th
on 7 January, 2008. Nowhere in the application it is stated as to what was
CM (M) No.1064/2010 Page 4 of 9
the occasion for petitioner to engage a new counsel and on which date new
counsel was engaged. Application is absolutely silent on these aspects.
th
11. Order sheet dated 7 January, 2008 shows that, even on last two
th
dates prior to 7 January, 2008, petitioner did not appear in court.
Petitioner has also filed an application under Section 151 of the Code for
production of certain documents. Filing of this application goes to show
th
that petitioner was well aware of the date of hearing as 7 January, 2008.
12. Present petitioner is a chronic litigant as in the list of dates it is
stated that, there are several cases filed by respondent no. 1 against
petitioner. This goes on to show that petitioner is well aware of the court
procedure and now he cannot take shelter under the garb that his counsel
advised him not to appear in the matter. Assuming for arguments sake, that
counsel for petitioner advised him not to appear in the court, then what was
the occasion for petitioner all of a sudden to engage a new counsel to
th
inspect the file on 30 January, 2010. It is also nowhere stated as to why
petitioner engaged a new counsel.
13. Trial court in impugned order observed;
“As matter of record on 7.1.08 the defendant was
proceeded ex parte for non appearance. Even on the
earlier occasion also the defendant has not appeared
in the court. Further proceedings reveal that
defendant no. 1 or his counsel did not appear in the
court till filing of the present application by defendant
CM (M) No.1064/2010 Page 5 of 9
no. 1 on 8.2.2010. Apparently, there is delay of
around two years in filing of the present application.
Defendant no. 1 might have engaged some other
counsel but as found earlier the defendant no. 1 has
not appeared in the court for long two years. The
explanation of the defendant that his counsel has
adviced him not to appear in the court does not inspire
the confidence of the court because the period of two
years is a big gap and further it is for the parties to be
vigilant and proceed with their matters so that their
interest is not defeated at any stage. The plea of
defendant no. 1 that his counsel has stopped appearing
in the court is found to be bald, bare and without any
basis. In case such application are entertained and
dealt with, it would amount to abuse to the process of
law. Accordingly, the application stands dismissed
with cost of Rs.4,000/- upon the defendant no.1.”
14. It is well settled that failure of lawyer to appear is necessarily not a
sufficient cause, conduct of parties has also to be seen. In ‘New Bank of
India Vs. M/s. Marvels (India) and Others ‟ 2001 VI AD (Delhi) 536 this
Court observed:
“There is no absolute proposition of law that all cases
of mistakes on the part of the advocate or pleader
would constitute sufficient cause. What is to be seen is
as to whether absence of the advocate was bonafide.
This is to be examined in conjunction with the conduct
of the party who had engaged advocate viz. whether he
was persuing his case diligently or the conduct and
approach was so callous that it amounted to
negligence. If this is so then non-appearance would
not be bonafide and it would not constitute sufficient
cause within the meaning of Order IX Rule 13 of the
Code of Civil Procedure.”
15. It was further observed:
CM (M) No.1064/2010 Page 6 of 9
“No doubt the words “sufficient cause” should receive
liberal construction so as to advance substantial
justice. However when it is found that the applicants
were most negligent in defending the case and their
non-action and want of bonafide are clearly imputable,
the Court would not help such a party. After all
“sufficient cause” is an elastic expression for which no
hard and fast guide-lines can be given and Court has to
decide on the facts of each case as to whether the
defendant who has suffered ex-parte decree has been
able to satisfactorily show sufficient cause for non-
appearance and in examining this aspect cumulative
effect of all the relevant factors is to be seen.”
16. Petitioner has taken the court proceedings in a very casual, careless
and negligent manner. Since, as per petitioner‟s own admission several
cases are pending between him and respondent no.1, he is not justified in
shifting the entire blame on his counsel.
17. In Indian Sewing Machines Co. Pvt. Ltd. Vs. Sansar Machine Ltd.
and Anr., 56 (1994) Delhi Law Times 45, it was observed;
“The question to be examined is whether the
responsibility of the defendants as a litigant comes to
an end merely by engaging a counsel and should not a
litigant show diligence on his part.”
18. In Ravinder Kaur Vs. Ashok Kumar and Anr., (2003) 8 Supreme
Court Cases 289, it has been laid down that;
“Courts of law should be careful enough to see through
such diabolical plans of the judgment debtors to deny
the decree holders the fruits of the decree obtained by
them. These type of errors on the part of the judicial
forums only encourage frivolous and cantankerous
CM (M) No.1064/2010 Page 7 of 9
litigations causing law‟s delay and bringing bad name
to the judicial system”.
19. In Salil Dutta v. T. M. and M. C. Private Ltd., (1993) 2 SCC 185,
the Court observed;
“The advocate is the agent of the party. His acts and
statements, made within the limits of authority given to
him, are the acts and statements of the principal i.e. the
party who engaged him. It is true that in certain
situations, the court may, in the interest of justice, set
aside a dismissal order or an ex parte decree
notwithstanding the negligence and/or misdemeanor of
the advocate where it finds that the client was an
innocent litigant but there is no such absolute rule that
a party can disown its advocate at any time and seek
relief. No such absolute immunity can be recognized.
Such an absolute rule would make the working of the
system extremely difficult.”
20. In view of above facts, no ambiguity or illegality can be found in the
impugned order. Present petition under Article 227 of the Constitution of
India is most bogus and friviolous one and same has been filed just to delay
the proceedings in a recovery suit, which was filed long back about six
years ago. Only motive of the petitioner is to delay the proceedings.
Petitioner even did not pay the costs of Rs. 4,000/- imposed upon him by
the trial court.
21. It is well settled that frivolous litigation clogs the wheels of justice
making it difficult for courts to provide easy and speedy justice to genuine
litigants. Those litigants who are in the habit of challenging each and every
CM (M) No.1064/2010 Page 8 of 9
order, even if the same is based on sound reasoning and goes on filling
frivolous application/petition, must be dealt with heavy hands.
22. Under these circumstances, present petition which is meritless,
bogus and most frivolous one, is hereby dismissed with costs of Rs.25,000/-
(Rupees Twenty Five Thousand Only).
23. Petitioner is directed to deposit the costs by way of cross cheque
with Registrar General of this court, within four weeks from today
th
24. List for compliance on 27 September, 2010.
CM No. 14828/2010 (stay)
25. Dismissed.
th
25 August, 2010 V.B.GUPTA, J.
ab
CM (M) No.1064/2010 Page 9 of 9