Court may modify procedural orders to permit filing of counter affidavits for ends of justice.

The applicants, impleaded as Respondent Nos. 6 and 7 in the main writ petition [WP(C) No. 425 of 2022], approached the High Court seeking the modification of a procedural order

By an order dated November 20, 2023, the Court had closed the opportunity for these respondents to file their counter-affidavit

The applicants contended that the inability to file their response caused significant prejudice to their case

Consequently, they prayed for the reopening of the opportunity to file their counter-affidavit to ensure their defense was properly recorded

1. Whether the Court should exercise its discretion to modify a previous order closing the right to file a counter-affidavit in order to meet the ends of justice

The Court primarily relied upon the principle of "ends of justice" and the inherent power of the Court to regulate its own proceedings to ensure a fair adjudication

This principle mandates that procedural technicalities should not typically override the right of a party to be heard, especially when the absence of a defense would cause undue prejudice

The Court evaluated the applicants' claim of prejudice alongside the procedural history of the case

It observed that neither the original petitioner nor the other respondents offered any "strong opposition" to the prayer for modifying the previous order

The Court reasoned that for the "end of justice," it was necessary to allow the applicants to place their counter-affidavit on record to ensure a comprehensive hearing of the merits

Consequently, the Court found it appropriate to modify the restrictive nature of the previous order to facilitate the completion of pleadings

The Court held that the interest of justice outweighed the procedural lapse

It modified the prior order (noted as 10.07.2023 in the text) to read: “Filing of Counter Affidavit on behalf of the respondent Nos. 6 & 7 is allowed”

The Court directed the applicants to file the said counter-affidavit definitely within the next fixed date and disposed of the petition