A mediation period is excluded when calculating the 120-day limit for filing written statements, ensuring adherence to procedural justice in civil suits.

JUDGMENT :

ANIL KSHETARPAL, J.

1. Through the present Appeal filed under Section 10 of the DELHI HIGH COURT ACT , 1966 read with Order XLIII Rule 1 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 [hereinafter referred to as ‘CPC’] the Appellants [Defendant Nos.1 to 3 before the learned Single Judge] assail the correctness of the Impugned Orders dated 04.02.2025 and 19.05.2025 by which O.A. No. 93/2024 and Rev. Pet. No. 220/2025, respectively, were dismissed by the learned Single Judge. The Chamber Appeal being O.A. No. 93/2024 and a subsequent Revision Petition being Rev.Pet. No. 220/2025 was filed by the Appellants in captioned Charanjit Sandhu v Sangita Rai Sandhu & Ors. [hereinafter referred to as ‘the Civil Suit’]. Vide both the said proceedings initiated by the Appellants, they challenged the order dated 21.12.2023 passed by the learned Joint Registrar, through which the right of the Appellants to file a Written Statement was closed with an observation that the statutory period of 120 days, from the date of service, has already expired.

FACTUAL MATRIX:

2. The dispute before this Court arises out of a partition suit filed by the Respondent No.1 [Plaintiff before the learned Single Judge] which was contested by the Appellants. However, since the issue requiring adjudication by this Court pertains solely to a pure question of procedural law, it is considered appropriate by this Court to not delve deeply into the substantive merits of the Civil Suit. Accordingly, only those facts that are directly relevant and/or material to the procedural issue being dealt by this Court shall be referred to hereinafter.

3. The relevant dates laying down the procedural history of the present issue, in furtherance to the filing of the written statement, is provided hereinbelow:

4. The Appellants’ right to file the written statement was closed by the learned Joint Registrar on 21.12.2023. Pursuant thereto, the Appellants filed a Chamber Appeal under Chapter II Rule 5 of Delhi High Court (Original Side) Rules, 2018 [hereinafter referred to as ‘the Rules, 2018’]. However, vide the Impugned Order dated 04.02.2025, this Appeal was dismissed by the learned Single Judge on the ground that the Appellants had deliberately chosen not to file the written statement, despite the learned Single Judge’s categorical direction in Order dated 29.03.2023 to complete the pleadings during the subsistence of mediation process.

5. Subsequent to the dismissal of the Chamber Appeal, the Appellants filed a Review Petition under Order XLVIII Rule 1 read with Section 115 of the CPC seeking review of the Order of dismissal of the Chamber Appeal. The learned Single Judge dismissed the sai