State Of J & K vs Ishya Rani
2021 Latest Caselaw 1622 j&K

                                                                    Sr. No. 12



      HIGH COURT OF JAMMU AND KASHMIR AND LADAKH
                       AT JAMMU

                                                CONCR No. 72/2015

State of J & K                                      ....Petitioner/Appellant(s)


                 Through :- Mr. Aseem Sawhney, AAG


         V/s

Ishya Rani                                                  ....Respondent(s)

                 Through :-     None.

Coram: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE TASHI RABSTAN, JUDGE

                                        ORDER

1. This is an application seeking condonation of delay of 49 days in filing

appeal against the judgment dated 30.01.2015 passed by learned Principal

District and Sessions Judge, Kathua in case tilted "State v. Ishya Rani". The

case in brief is that complainant Jai Dev Sharma lodged a complaint against the

non-applicant/respondent and accordingly FIR No. 46/2011 under Section 436

RPC was registered before the Police Station Kathua. After completion of the

trial, the learned Sessions Judge vide judgment dated 30.01.2015 acquitted the

accused-non-applicant herein.

2. Aggrieved of the judgment dated 30.01.2015, appellant/applicant has filed

condonation of delay application along with leave to appeal. It is contended in

the application for condonation of delay that the Government vide

communication dated 02.06.2015 accorded sanction for filing appeal against the

impugned judgment dated 30.01.2015 which was received in the office of

Advocate General on 08.06.2015. It is further averred that the brief was handed

CONCR No. 72/2015

over to Senior Additional Advocate General on 09.06.2015, who examined the

judgment and prepared the appeal on 11.06.2015.

3. In the present case, the judgment has been passed on 30.01.2015. Four

months have been taken for getting the sanction and thereafter further one month

for filing the appeal along with condonation and leave to file the appeal, which

clearly shows the conduct of the appellant-applicant in such type of criminal

matters. It is strange that more than six months have been taken by the

Government to file the appeal, though, the applicant being a Government

authority should not have any difficulty in filing the appeal in due time. Even

otherwise, no one appeared to pursue the matter and the same remained pending

for more than six years and also the application has been drafted in a very vague

and casual manner.

4. Merely saying that the delay was on account of procedural aspect, is not

sufficient cause to condone the delay. The Hon'ble Supreme Court in SLP

(Civil) Diary No(s).19846/2020 titled as Union of India Vs. Central Tibetan

Schools Admin & Ors., decided on 04.02.2021 while dismissing it on account of

delay observed as under:-

"We have repeatedly being counselling through our orders various Government departments, State Governments and other public authorities that they must learn to file appeals in time and set their house in order so far as the legal department is concerned, more so as technology assists them. This appears to be falling on deaf ears despite costs having been imposed in number of matters with the direction to recover it from the officers responsible for the delay as we are of the view that these officers must be made accountable. It has

CONCR No. 72/2015

not had any salutary effect and that the present matter should have been brought up, really takes the cake!

The aforesaid itself shows the casual manner in which the petitioner has approached this Court without any cogent or plausible ground for condonation of delay. In fact, other than the lethargy and incompetence of the petitioner, there is nothing which has been put on record. We have repeatedly discouraged State Governments and public authorities in adopting an approach that they can walk in to the Supreme Court as and when they please ignoring the period of limitation prescribed by the Statutes, as if the Limitation statute does not apply to them. In this behalf, suffice to refer to our judgment in the State of Madhya Pradesh & Ors. v. Bheru Lal [SLP [C] Diary No.9217/2020 decided on 15.10.2020] and The State of Odisha & Ors. v. Sunanda Mahakuda [SLP [C] Diary No.22605/2020 decided on 11.01.2021]...."

5. For the foregoing reasons, I do not find any merit in the application

and as such the application seeking condonation of delay deserves to be rejected

and accordingly, the same is dismissed. Resultantly, in light of dismissal of

condonation of delay the Criminal Acquittal Appeal shall also stand dismissed,

being time barred.

(Tashi Rabstan) Judge Jammu:

06.12.2021 Sahil T

Whether the order is speaking? Yes/No Whether the order is reportable? Yes/No