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1993 Supreme(Del) 683

High Court Of Delhi
HAR KISHAN LAL - Appellant
Versus
JAIN TEXTILES TRADERS - Respondent
Civil 458 of 1979
Decided On : 11/23/1993

Advocates Appeared:
G.N.AGGARWAL, Rajinder Mathur, V.B.ANDLEY

A suit for injunction against a public nuisance is maintainable by an individual whose rights are affected, even if the act complained of also amounts to a public nuisance.

Headnote:

PUBLIC NUISANCE - SUIT FOR INJUNCTION - SECTION 91 CPC - SECTION 478 DELHI MUNICIPAL CORPORATION ACT - Whether suit for injunction maintainable despite public nuisance - Whether prior notice required under Section 478 of the Delhi Municipal Corporation Act.

Fact of the Case:

Plaintiff filed a suit for mandatory and permanent injunction against the defendants for obstructing the common courtyard and depriving him of the use of his shop on the first floor. The defendants argued that the suit was not maintainable due to the provisions of Section 91 of the Code of Civil Procedure (CPC) and Section 478 of the Delhi Municipal Corporation Act.

Finding of the Court:

The court held that the suit was maintainable despite the provisions of Section 91 CPC and Section 478 of the Delhi Municipal Corporation Act.

Issues: 1. Whether the suit was barred by the provisions of Section 91 of the CPC? 2. Whether prior notice was required under Section 478 of the Delhi Municipal Corporation Act?

Ratio Decidendi: 1. Section 91(2) CPC does not limit or affect any right of suit that exists independently of its provisions. 2. The plaintiff had an independent right to sue for the alleged acts of the defendants, even if those acts amounted to public nuisance. 3. Section 478 of the Delhi Municipal Corporation Act does not require prior notice for a suit seeking injunction against the Corporation for its omission to perform statutory duties. 4. The suit for injunction was maintainable without serving prior notice on the Corporation under Section 478 of the Delhi Municipal Corporation Act.

Final Decision: The court dismissed the revision petition and directed the lower court to proceed with the suit.

Mr. P. K. Bahri, J.

( 1 ) THIS Civil Revision pertains to an interim order made by the learned Sub Judge by which he had negatived the plea of the petitioners/ defendants that the suit was not maintainable in view of the provisions of Section 91 of the Code of Civil Procedure and Section 478 of The Delhi Municipal Corporation Act.

( 2 ) THE suit was brought by the respondent/plaintiff pleading that the plaintiff is having his business at first floor of premises No. 336/3, Naya Katra, Chandni Chowk, Delhi and the plaintiff is selling the cloth in wholesale and large number of traders and customers visit his shop on the first floor and the petitioners/ defendants 1 and 2 are having business premises again on the first floor and they are dealing in wholesale business of selling dupattas . There exists a big courtyard on the first floor and besides the two shops, there are other shops also located on the said first floor. The customers and the shopkeepers had to go through a long passage on the ground floor and then had to climb up the stair to reach the first floor and the big common courtyard in front of the said shops on the first floor is meant for common use of the shopkeepers as well as the customers.

( 3 ) THE petitioners are stated to have, on or about September 20, 1977, erected two big steel racks in front of the shop of the plaintiff/respondent. Those racks are of 10 ft. height and they have been fixed upto the roof and the said racks have obstructed the passage of the plaintiff and had deprived the plaintiff and his customers the use of the portion of the common courtyard and the said racks have also obstructed the light and air of the shop of the plaintiff which has become quite dark. Thus, the plaintiff sought relief of mandatory injunction requiring the petitioners and the municipal corporation to remove the said illegal construction of the steel racks in front of the shop of the plaintiff and had also sought relief of permanent injunction restraining the petitioners from placing any boxes, cartons or constructing any further racks in the said courtyard, particularly in front of the shop of the plaintiff.

( 4 ) COUNSEL for the petitioners has vehemently argued that the act complained by the respondent in the plaint amounts to a public nuisance and thus, in view of Section 91 of the Code of Civil Procedure, the suit could not be maintainable except in consonance with the provisions of Section 91, which clearly lay down that in case of a public nuisance or other wrongful act affecting or likely to affect the public, a suit for declaration and injunction or for such other relief may be instituted by the Advocate General, or with the leave of the Court, by two or more persons, even though no special damage has been caused to such persons by reason of such public nuisance or other wrongful act.

( 5 ) THE learned Counsel for the petitioners, however, forgets that Section 91 (2) makes it clear that nothing in this section shall be deemed to limit or otherwise affect any right of suit which may exist independently of its provisions. It is obvious that if a particular right of suit arises in favour of a particular person, even if there is public nuisance, even then such right of suit is not affected by provisions ofsection91 (1) of the Code of Civil Procedure.

( 6 ) IN the present case, it is not any public street in which any nuisance is being created so that it could be treated as a public nuisance, as contemplated by Section 91 of the Code of Civil Procedure. The act of the petitioners, which is complained of, has occurred on a common courtyard to which the customers visiting the shops on the first floor have right of access besides the shops are located on the first floor. Assuming for the sake of arguments that it has also some element of public nuisance as customers generally can visit the said place without any hinderance, even then the cause of action has accrued to the plaintiff as his individual rights arc being a







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