Ajay Kumar Jain vs The State Of Uttar Pradesh

Court
Supreme Court
Case type
Not Found
Decided on
09-12-2024
<pre> <b>REPORTABLE</b>
<b>IN THE SUPREME COURT OF INDIA</b>
2024 INSC 958
<b>CIVIL ORIGINAL JURISDICTION</b>
<b>MISCELLANEOUS APPLICATION Diary No(s). 39665/2024</b>
<b>IN</b>
<b>M.A.D.No.14381/2024</b>
<b>IN</b>
<b>M.A.No. 714 of 2022</b>
<b>IN</b>
<b>W.P.(C) 429 of 2020</b>
<b>AJAY KUMAR JAIN …Petitioner(s)</b>
<b> </b>
<b>VERSUS</b>
<b>THE STATE OF UTTAR PRADESH &amp; ANR. …Respondent(s)</b>
<b>O R D E R</b>
<b>1.</b> <b>Delay condoned.</b>
<b>2.</b> <b>Application seeking permission to appear and argue-in-person</b>
<b>is allowed.</b>
<b>3.</b> <b>This miscellaneous application is at the instance of the</b>
<b>original petitioner of Writ Petition (Civil) No.429 of 2020.</b>
<b>4.</b> <b>In this miscellaneous application, the applicant has prayed</b>
<b>for the following reliefs:-</b>
<b>“A. To Direct the Hon&#x27;ble Distt. Judge, Agra; The S.S.P.,</b>
<b>Agra to grant protection to the applicant during the</b>
<b>pendency of Civil appeal number 126/2021 pending before</b>
<b>the Hon&#x27;ble Distt. Judge, Agra on 29th March,2022 and</b>
<b>subsequent dates; and</b>
<b>B. pass such a order and directions as deemed fit and</b>
<b>proper in the facts and circumstances of this case.”</b>
Signature Not Verified
Digitally signed by
VISHAL ANAND
Date: 2024.12.10
17:56:30 IST
Reason:
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<b>5.</b> <b>We take notice of the fact that the Writ Petition (Civil)</b>
<b>No.429/2020 came to be disposed of vide order dated 6-8-2021 in the</b>
<b>following terms:-</b>
<b>&quot;The petitioner, who appears in person, seeks a two-fold</b>
<b>direction under Article 32 of the Constitution:</b>
<b>(i) A direction to the first respondent to devise a</b>
<b>mechanism for enforcing court orders; and</b>
<b>(ii) A direction to the District Judge to dispose of the</b>
<b>proceedings which have been initiated by the petitioner for</b>
<b>breach of the order which enures to his benefit,</b>
<b>2. The wider relief which has been sought by the petitioner</b>
<b>in (i) above cannot be entertained in these proceedings</b>
<b>under Article 32, However, insofar as the specific grievance</b>
<b>of the petitioner is concerned, we direct that the</b>
<b>application, Contempt Application No 26 of 2016, which has</b>
<b>been filed by him complaining of a breach of the order</b>
<b>enuring to his benefit may be disposed of expeditiously, if</b>
<b>it has not already been disposed of, within a period of</b>
<b>three months from the date of receipt of a certified copy of</b>
<b>this order.</b>
<b>3. We clarify that we have made no observations on the</b>
<b>merits of the issues which are sought to be raised in the</b>
<b>contempt proceedings.</b>
<b>4. The writ petition is accordingly disposed of.</b>
<b>5. Pending application, if any, stands disposed of.&quot;</b>
<b>6.</b> <b>Thus, while disposing of the main matter, this Court observed</b>
<b>that in so far as the wider relief which was prayed for by the</b>
<b>applicant – herein, could not have been granted in proceedings</b>
<b>under Article 32 of the Constitution of India. However, this Court</b>
<b>proceeded to issue directions to the District Judge to dispose of</b>
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<b>the contempt application No.26/2016 filed by the applicant herein</b>
<b>expeditiously.</b>
<b>7.</b> <b>We have heard Dr. Ajay Kumar Jain appearing in-person.</b>
<b>8.</b> <b>Dr. Jain brought to our notice that in pursuance of the</b>
<b>directions issued by this Court, referred to above, his contempt</b>
<b>application No.26/2016 was heard and the same was allowed. Against</b>
<b>such order, the contemnor went in appeal and his appeal is also</b>
<b>dismissed vide order dated 11-11-2024.</b>
<b>9.</b> <b>His grievance is that despite all the aforestated</b>
<b>developments, he has not been able to achieve any positive result</b>
<b>in his litigation,</b>
<b>10.</b> <b>Today, he apprehends threat to himself and his family members</b>
<b>at the end of the contemnor.</b>
<b>11.</b> <b>This Miscellaneous Application on the face of it is not</b>
<b>maintainable in law.</b>
<b>12.</b> <b>It is high time that this Court says something on the practice</b>
<b>of the litigants filing miscellaneous applications in disposed of</b>
<b>proceedings and that too after a period of 5 years, 7 years, 10</b>
<b>years.</b>
<b>13.</b> <b>These miscellaneous applications which are being filed on</b>
<b>daily basis have something to do with fresh cause of action that</b>
<b>might have arisen with a very remote connection with the main</b>
<b>proceedings.</b>
<b>14.</b> <b>No miscellaneous application is maintainable in a writ</b>
<b>petition to revive proceedings in respect of subsequent events.</b>
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<b>15.</b> <b>In fact, the Court has no jurisdiction to entertain such</b>
<b>application as no proceedings could be said to be pending before</b>
<b>it. When proceedings stand terminated by final disposal of the writ</b>
<b>petition be it under Article 32 of the Constitution or Article 226</b>
<b>of the Constitution before the High Court, it is not open to the</b>
<b>Court to re-open the proceedings by means of a miscellaneous</b>
<b>application in respect of a matter which provided a fresh cause of</b>
<b>action. If this principle is not followed, there would be confusion</b>
<b>and chaos and the finality of the proceedings would cease to have</b>
<b>any meaning. </b>
<b>16.</b> <b>In the recent past, a co-ordinate bench of this Court observed</b>
<b>the following in “</b> <b><i>Jaipur Vidyut Vitran Nigam Ltd, and Others vs.</i></b>
<b><i>Adani Power Rajasthan Ltd. and Another</i></b> <b> reported in 2024 SCC OnLine</b>
<b>SC 313”:-</b>
<b>“We felt it necessary to examine the question about</b>
<b>maintainability of the present application as we are of the</b>
<b>view that it was necessary to spell out the position of law</b>
<b>as to when such post-disposal miscellaneous applications</b>
<b>can be entertained after a matter is disposed of. This</b>
<b> </b> <b>Court has become </b> <b> </b> <b><i> </i></b> <b><i>functus officio</i></b> <b><i> </i></b> <b> and does not retain</b>
<b>jurisdiction to entertain an application after the appeal</b>
<b>was disposed of by the judgment of a three-Judge Bench of</b>
<b>this Court on 31.08.2020 through a course beyond that</b>
<b>specified in the statute. This is not an application for</b>
<b>correcting any clerical or arithmetical error. Neither it</b>
<b>is an application for extension of time. A post disposal</b>
<b>application for modification and clarification of the order</b>
<b>of disposal shall lie only in rare cases, where the order</b>
<b>passed by this Court is executory in nature and the</b>
<b>directions of the Court may become impossible to be</b>
<b>implemented because of subsequent events or developments.</b>
<b>The factual background of this Application does not fit</b>
<b>into that description.”</b>
<b>(Emphasis supplied)</b>
<b>17.</b> <b>Thus, this Court made it abundantly clear that a miscellaneous</b>
<b>application filed in a disposed of proceedings would be</b>
<b>maintainable only for the purpose of correcting any clerical or</b>
<b>arithmetical error. The Court further clarified that a post</b>
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<b>disposal application for modification or clarification of the order</b>
<b>would lie only in rare cases where the order passed by this Court</b>
<b>is executory in nature and the directions of the Court may have</b>
<b>become impossible to be implemented because of subsequent events or</b>
<b>developments. </b>
<b>18.</b> <b>The Registry shall not circulate any miscellaneous application</b>
<b>filed in a disposed of proceedings unless and until there is a</b>
<b>specific averment on oath that the filing of the miscellaneous</b>
<b>application has been necessitated as the order passed in the main</b>
<b>proceedings being executory in nature and have become impossible to</b>
<b>be implemented because of subsequent events or developments. </b>
<b>19.</b> <b>The Registry shall insist from every applicant who intends to</b>
<b>file any miscellaneous application in a disposed of proceedings for</b>
<b>such a declaration as above on solemn affirmation.</b>
<b>20.</b> <b>If the applicant appearing in-person has an apprehension that</b>
<b>the contemnor is likely to cause any harm to him or any of his</b>
<b>family members, it is open for him to file a writ petition before</b>
<b>the territorial High Court under Article 226 of the Constitution</b>
<b>and seek appropriate relief in that regard.</b>
<b>21.</b> <b>This Miscellaneous Application stands rejected with liberty to</b>
<b>the applicant appearing in-person to avail appropriate legal remedy</b>
<b>before the appropriate forum in accordance with law.</b>
<b>22. Application for appeal against Registrar’s order is also</b>
<b>rejected.</b>
<b>23.</b> <b>If any writ petition is filed by the applicant before the High</b>
<b>Court, seeking protection the High Court may look into it in</b>
<b>accordance with law at the earliest. </b>
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<b>24.</b> <b>Pending applications, if any, also stand disposed of.</b>
………………………………J.
<b> J.B. PARDIWALA</b>
<b> </b>

………………………………J.
<b> R. MAHADEVAN</b>
<b>New Delhi.</b>
<b>th</b>
<b>9</b> <b> December, 2024.</b>
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