Delhi High Court
Chander Bati vs Om Prakash & Ors. on 2 February, 2010
Author: Shiv Narayan Dhingra
* IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI
Date of Reserve: January 14, 2010
Date of Order: February 02, 2010
+ CM(M) 67/2008
% 02.02.2010
Chander Bati ...Petitioner
Through: Mr. Sukhbir Singh and Mr. Nishant Singh, Advocates
Versus
Om Prakash & Ors. ...Respondents
Through: nemo
JUSTICE SHIV NARAYAN DHINGRA
1. Whether reporters of local papers may be allowed to see the judgment? Yes.
2. To be referred to the reporter or not? Yes.
3. Whether judgment should be reported in Digest? Yes.
JUDGMENT
1. By this petition the petitioner has assailed an order dated 13 th November 2007
whereby an application of the petitioner under Order 6 Rule 17 CPC seeking leave to
amend the plaint was partly allowed and partly rejected.
2. The petitioner herein had sought to amend the paragraphs 11, 12 and 13 of
the plaint and had also sought to add additional prayer (e) and (f). The plea taken by
the petitioner for seeking amendment was that after filing of the suit when
defendants filed written statement, the petitioner herein learnt about another decree
dated 2nd May, 1986 passed in Suit No.248 of 1984 titled as Nihal Chand versus
Bhoop Singh. After perusal of the judgment in this case, the petitioner came to
conclusion that respondent no.1 to 7, 15 and deceased Smt. Kamla Devi had
connived with each other and conspired against the petitioner and another daughter
of Shri Bhoop Singh and the aforesaid decree was obtained without impleading the
petitioner and other daughters of late Shri Bhoop Singh as party to the suit no.248 of
1984. Thus, the petitioner wanted to make amendment in the plaint that the
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judgment and decree dated 2nd May, 1986 was not binding upon the petitioner since
the petitioner was not a party to that suit and the decree in that suit was obtained by
the respondents in connivance with each other to cause wrongful loss. The petitioner
also wanted to make consequential amendments in the plaint alleging that defendant
no.1 had no right and title to execute the documents after a decree was passed by
the Court in suit no.248 of 1984 and the petitioner wanted amendment in paragraph
12 of the plaint in order to plead that the sale in favour of defendant no.2 by
defendant no.1 of the adjacent shop was also null and void. In paragraph 13 of the
plaint, the petitioner wanted to bring on record that defendant no.13 had been
wrongly and illegally shown at serial number 4 as Lr of deceased Bhoop Singh in Suit
248 of 1984. Defendant no.13 was also liable to be prosecuted with other defendants
for wrongful mentioning the father's name as Bhoop Singh. In prayer clause, the
petitioner wanted a declaration that documents executed in favour of defendants
no.8, 12 and 13 were null and void and were not legally enforceable and a
declaration that the judgment and order dated 2 nd May, 1986 in Suit no. 248 of 1984
was null and void and not binding upon him and he wanted a declaratory relief that
the sale of the suit property in favour of Shri Sunder Lal was null and void.
3. The learned trial court after considering the arguments came to conclusion
that since the petitioner claimed that he had come to know of passing of decree
dated 2nd May, 1984 recently, and petitioner has a separate cause of action for the
decree to be declared null and void. The amendment of the suit was not the remedy
available to the petitioner. He therefore did not allow the amendment regarding
declaring the decree as null and void and declaration of sale in favour of respondent
no.12 as null and void. However, he allowed the amendment in paragraph 12 since
the petitioner had already taken the stand in respect of these pleadings in the plaint
and paragraph 12 was merely an explanatory paragraph. The trial court also
observed that the suit number 248 of 1984 was not between the same parties and
the decree and judgment of that case could not be declared as null and void without
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making all the parties to that suit as parties to the present suit and this would
complicate the present case and it was also not necessary for adjudication the lis
between the parties.
4. It is settled law that a certified copy of a judgment passed by a competent
court can be taken on record without a formal proof. The petitioner can argue at final
stage whether the judgment was binding on her or not. The judgment of a Civil Court
in respect to property dispute between the parties is not a judgment in rem and does
not decide rights in respect of world at large. The judgment is always effective
between the parties to the judgment. For considering the applicability of the
judgment there was no necessity of seeking an amendment of pleadings. If the
petitioner wanted to get the judgment to be declared as null and void, the petitioner
has to file a separate suit. The learned trial court, therefore, rightly rejected the plea
of the petitioner of allowing amendment regarding declaration of the judgment and
decree as null and void. Similarly, petitioner's seeking amendment of the plaint for
declaring the sale deed made in favour of defendant no.12 as null and void was also
a separate cause of action and the petitioner was at liberty to pursue this cause of
action separately.
5. In view of foregoing facts, I consider that the learned trial court has not acted
without jurisdiction. I find no ground to interfere the impugned order. The petition is
hereby dismissed with no orders as to costs.
February 02, 2010 SHIV NARAYAN DHINGRA J.
rd
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