High Court Of Calcutta
Salil Kumar Datta
SURENDRA NATH SARKAR - Appellant
Versus
MANATAB MONIAN - Respondent
Civilrevncase 1692 Of 1976
Decided On : 02/09/1978
CIVIL PROCEDURE CODE - Order 1, Rule 10 (2) - Addition of parties - Suit for declaration of title and injunction - Abatement of suit in respect of deceased parties - Application for substitution after setting aside abatement rejected - Subsequent application under Order 1, Rule 10 (2) to add legal representatives of deceased parties - Maintainability.
Fact of the Case:
Plaintiffs filed a suit for declaration of title and injunction. During the pendency of the suit, plaintiff No. 2 and defendant No. 2 died. An application for substitution was made but rejected. The plaintiffs then filed an application under Order 1, Rule 10 (2) of the Civil Procedure Code to add the legal representatives of the deceased parties.
Finding of the Court:
The court held that the application under Order 1, Rule 10 (2) of the Civil Procedure Code was not maintainable. The court reasoned that once the application for substitution after setting aside abatement caused by the deaths of some parties in a suit is rejected on merits, the plaintiff will not be permitted to circumvent the position caused by operation of law to add them as parties by invoking the aid of Order 1. Rule 10 (2) of the Civil Procedure Code or of Section 151 of the Code.
Issues: Whether an application under Order 1, Rule 10 (2) of the Civil Procedure Code is maintainable to add the legal representatives of deceased parties after the suit has abated in respect of those parties and an application for substitution after setting aside abatement has been rejected.
Ratio Decidendi: The court held that the provisions of Order 1, Rule 10 (2) of the Civil Procedure Code do not apply when by operation of other provisions of the Code the suit has abated in respect of a party properly joined and attempt to bring his heirs and legal representatives on record has failed by an order of court. The court further held that it cannot be said that provisions of Rule 10 (2) override other provisions of the Code.
Final Decision: The court allowed the Rule and set aside the impugned order. The court directed that the suit be disposed of expeditiously.
( 1 ) THIS Rule is directed against an order No. 102 dated 3-5-1976 passed by the Munsif, Additional Court, Ranaghat, in Title Suit No. 250 of 1964 By that order, the learned Munsif allowed an application filed by the plaintiffs 1 and 3 under Order 1, Rule 10 (2) of the Civil P. C. adding the heirs and legal representatives of plaintiff No. 2 as parties to the suit. The suit was for the declaration of the plaintiffs' title in the suit properties and for injunction restraining the defendants from interfering with their possession. It appears that in course of proceedings an application for amendment of the plaint was filed by the plaintiffs which was rejected and against that decision, the plaintiffs came up in revision giving rise to Civil Revision Case No. 2633 of 1965. While this Rule was pending, the plaintiff No. 2 and defendant No. 2 died and no application for substitution was made in time in respect of the aforesaid parties. Later an application for substitution after setting aside abatement was made but it appears that the application was dismissed and by an order dated Jan. 22, 1970, this Court held that the Rule having abated so far as defendants-opposite party No. 2 was concerned, it could not effectively proceed against the remaining opposite parties. The court further noted that one of the plaintiff-petitioners was also dead and no substitution was effected in his case either and the Rule was accordingly discharged. A review application giving rise to Civil Rule No. 1732 (R) of 1970 was also discharged by this Court by an order dated 12-7-1971. It may be noted here that Mr. Dutta Gupta, learned Advocate for the opposite parties states that the application for substitution in so far as the defendant-opposite party No. 2 is concerned was made within time but unfortunately the Court's attention was not drawn to the position before the aforesaid orders were passed. In this Rule it is not possible for me to consider this statement and/or to revise the aforesaid orders on that ground.
( 2 ) THE plaintiffs Nos. 1 and 3 filed another application in the suit for substitution of the heirs and legal representatives of the aforesaid deceased parties after setting aside abatement. The said application was rejected by the trial court and an appeal therefrom was also dismissed. Thereafter on May 16, 1975, an application under Order 1 Rule 10 (2) of the Civil P. C. was filed for addition of the heirs and legal representatives of plaintiff No. 2 and defendant No. 2 in the present proceedings. This application has been allowed by the order impugned in this Rule.
( 3 ) MR. Saha appearing for the defendants-petitioners has submitted that in the aforesaid circumstances it was not open to the court to allow an application adding the heirs and legal representatives of some deceased parties in the suit after the suit has abated in respect of the aforesaid parties. He has referred to the decision (Union of India v. Ram Charan) in which it was observed that the court is not to invoke its inherent powers under Section 151 of the Code for the purposes of impleading legal representative of a deceased respondent after the suit had abated on account of the appellant not taking appropriate steps within time to bring the legal representative of the deceased on record and when its application for setting aside abatement was not allowed on account of its failure to satisfy the court that there was sufficient cause for not impleading the legal representative of the deceased in time and for not applying for setting aside of the abatement within time. He has also referred to the decision in Rameswar Prasad v. Syam Beharilal in which the court also held that the discretionary power cannot be exercised to nullify the effect of the abatement of the appeal so far as the deceased party is concerned. The court further observed that it had also wide discretion to pass such decrees and orders as the interests of justice demanded and s
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