IMPORTANT POINT
Period of limitation – Under 23.03.2020 Order by Supreme Court, in case limitation had expired after 15.03.2020, period between 15.03.2020 and lifting of lockdown in jurisdictional area would be extended for a period of 15 days after lifting of lockdown, expanding protection by excluding period even for computing outer limits within which court or tribunal can condone delay.

JUDGMENT :

K.V. VISWANATHAN, J.

1. Leave granted.

2. The present appeals challenge the judgment of the High Court at Calcutta dated 26.02.2021 passed in General Application Nos. 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10 of 2021 in Civil Suit No. 177 of 2019. By the said judgment, the High Court had dismissed the said applications and consequently denied the applicants/defendants prayer to take on record their written statements. According to the High Court, the applications cannot be allowed as the period of 30 days to file the written statements had expired on 08.03.2020. The High Court has held that the order dated 23.03.2020 passed by this Court in Suo Motu Writ Petition (C) No. 3 of 2020 [In Re: Cognizance for Extension of Limitation] which is to be effective from 15.03.2020 would not enure to the benefit of the applicants/defendants since the limitation period for filing the written statements had expired on 08.03.2020. The High Court has further held that, as held in Sagufa Ahmed and Others vs. Upper Assam Plywood Products Private Limited and Others, (2021) 2 SCC 317, since the orders of this Court under Article 142 of the Constitution of India extended only “the period of limitation” and not the period up to which delay can be condoned, the applications for taking on record the written statements cannot be entertained.

Relevant Facts:

3. To understand the correctness or otherwise of the judgment impugned, the following basic facts are necessary:

(i) On 30.08.2019, the respondent herein - IL and FS Financial Services Limited (the plaintiff) filed a suit for recovery of money along with other consequential reliefs in C.S. No. 177 of 2019 on the file of the High Court at Calcutta. There were nine defendants. The said nine defendants are appellants before us.

(ii) On 07.02.2020, summons was served in the suit on the defendants. Being a Commercial Suit, the 30-day period for filing written statements expired on 08.03.2020. On 06.06.2020, the further condonable period of 90 days also expired.

(iii) No written statements having been filed within the said timelines, the appellants, on 20.01.2021, filed in all eight applications for the nine defendants. The prayer in the applications was that the written statements of the defendants be accepted by extending the time. The reasons set out in the affidavit were that the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 as a pandemic on 11.03.2020; that the Government of India and the State Governments issued advisories related to the pandemic; that on 11.03.2020, orders were promulgated by the Government of India under the Disaster Management Act, 2005 to enhance the preparedness and containment of the pandemic; that the Government of West Bengal on 22.03.2020 imposed lockdown w.e.f. 23.03.2020; that during the month of April, 2020, the office of the answering applicants was completely closed. Most importantly, the affidavits relied on the order of this Court dated 23.03.2020, In Re: Cognizance for Extension of Limitation in Suo Motu W.P. (C) No. 3 of 2020 whereby this Court took suo motu cognizance of the situation and extended the period of limitation w.e.f. 15.03.2020 till further orders. The applicants also referred to the order of 10.07.2020 wherein this Court further extended the period of limitation, in connection with certain specific statutes. They averred that since the further period of 90 days had not expired at the time when the aforesaid order of 23.03.2020 was passed, they sought refuge under the orders of this Court dated 23.03.2020 and 10.07.2020.

(iv) These applications were vehemently opposed by the plaintiffs by their reply of 17.02.2021. Their objection was that the orders of this Court dated 23.03.2020 and 10.07.2020 would not come to the rescue of the applicants since the limitation period had expired prior to 15.03.2020.

(v) The plaintiff relied on the judgment of this Court dated 18.09.2020 in Sagufa Ahmed (supra) in support of its contention. The High Court having accepted the stan