IMPORTANT POINT
On existence of a specific provision of law, general provision under Section 151 CPC regarding inherent powers of Court cannot be invoked.

V.K. Sharma, J.— The petitioners, who are defendants before the learned trial court in a suit for grant of a decree of declaration alongwith the consequential relief of perpetual prohibitory injunction and in the alternative for possession, filed against them by the respondent as plaintiff, are aggrieved by the impugned order dated 14.1.2013, whereby their prayer for adducing in evidence certain revenue records, which are copies of Jamabandis for the years 1968-69 and 1973-74 and Nakal Rapat Rojnamcha of the year 1966-67, made under Section 151 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (in short, CPC), has been declined.

2. The prayer of the defendants for bringing on record the aforesaid documents was opposed on behalf of the plaintiff on the grounds that the provision of law under which the same were sought to be adduced in additional evidence was mentioned wrongly and the documents, which were stated to be already on record, were in fact obtained by the defendants subsequently after they closed their evidence on 6.12.2012.

3. I have heard the learned counsel for the parties and gone through the available on records.

4. True it is that in the existence of a specific provision of law, general provision under Section 151 CPC regarding inherent powers of the Court cannot be invoked. However, the fact also remains that mere wrong mention of the provision of law would not come in the way of dispensing substantial justice between the parties. Secondly, as the documents sought to be brought on record by way of additional evidence form part of official revenue record and have come from proper custody, it shall be expedient and in the interest of justice that the same are taken on record. It shall not cause any prejudice to the plaintiff, whose interest can be safeguarded by putting the defendants to terms.

5. In view of the above, the impugned order dated 14.1.2013, is reversed and instead the defendants are permitted to adduce in evidence copies of Jamabandis for the years 1968-69 and 1973-74 and Nakal Rapat Rojnamcha of the year 1966-67 ‘in accordance with law. However, it shall be subject to costs of Rs l,000/- (one thousand), to be tendered before the learned trial court, which shall also grant an opportunity to the plaintiff to rebut the aforesaid documents. The parties through their learned counsel are directed to appear before the learned trial court on 26th March, 2013.

6. The petition, as also pending CMP No. 124 of 2013, stand disposed of.

Petition dismissed.

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