JUDGMENT (Oral)

1. The impugned order dated 5th April, 2022, passed by the learned Senior Civil Judge/Rent Controller ("the learned SCJ/RC") rejects an application filed by the petitioner, as the defendant before the learned SCJ/RC, under Section 5 of the Limitation Act, 1963, in CS 297/2015 6662/16 (Mehsar Jahan v. Harish Bhardwaj) (hereinafter referred to as "the suit"), seeking condonation of delay in filing the written statement in response to the suit instituted by the respondent against the petitioner. Aggrieved, the petitioner has invoked the jurisdiction of this Court under Article 227 of the Constitution of India.

2. Given the parameters of the controversy, one need not venture into the details of the dispute between the petitioner and the respondent, forming subject matter of the suit.

3. Suffice it to state that summons, issued by the court in the suit, were served on the petitioner, as the defendant in the suit, on 21st November, 2015 (erroneously recorded, in para 7 of the impugned order as "21.11.2019"). The time for filing written statement, in response to the plaint, as provided by Order VIII Rule 1¹ of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (CPC) expired on or ar