Jharkhand High Court
Tata Iron And Steel Company Ltd. ... vs Smt. Uma Chatterjee on 14 June, 2022
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JHARKHAND AT RANCHI
[Civil Writ Jurisdiction]
W.P.(C) No. 3865 of 2009
Tata Iron and Steel Company Ltd. (Now known as Tata Steel Limited)
.... .. ... Petitioner
Versus
Smt. Uma Chatterjee .. ... ... Respondent
...........
CORAM :HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE KAILASH PRASAD DEO
.........
For the Petitioner : Mr. Shankar Lal Agrawal, Advocate
For the respondent :
......
09/ 14.06.2022.
Heard, learned counsel for the petitioner, Mr. Shankar Lal Agrawal.
Learned counsel for the petitioner, Mr. Shankar Lal Agrawal has submitted that
petitioner- Tata Iron and Steel Company Limited has preferred the instant writ
petition for quashing the order dated 13.04.2009 passed by Munsif, Jamshedpur
in Title Suit No.113/2004 whereby the defendant/petitioner has been debarred
from filing written statement as the defendant could not file the same within a
period of 90 days.
Learned counsel for the petitioner, Mr. Shankar Lal Agrawal has further
submitted that defendant has already filed written statement and because of the
impugned order, the same is not accepted. However, co-ordinate Bench of this
Court in terms of order dated 19.03.2012 has stayed further proceeding in the Title
Suit No.113 of 2004.
Nobody appears on behalf of the plaintiff/respondent, namely, Smt. Uma
Chatterjee though the notice has been issued to the respondent/plaintiff in terms of
order dated 19.03.2012 passed by co-ordinate Bench of this Court under registered
post as well as personal service with a direction to the court below to ensure that
copy of the petition be served to either the plaintiff or his counsel on the next date,
granting three weeks time to the plaintiff/ respondent to file counter-affidavit from
the date of receipt of the notice and the proceeding of Title Suit No.113 of 2004
pending in the court of Munsif, Jamshedpur has been stayed.
From perusal of the office note, it appears that copy of the order has been
communicated to the learned Munsif, Jamshedpur for necessary action and
requisite for issuance of notice has been filed under registered cover with A/D as
well as through personal service, receipt of notice and report of personal service
has been brought on record and service report with regard to the compliance of
order by the court of Civil Judge, Junior Division-I, Jamshedpur is on record that
notice has been properly served upon respondent through her counsel.
Further, it appears that plaintiff/respondent, namely, Smt. Uma Chatterjee, W/o
Sisir Chatterjee has appeared through her counsel, Mr. Ranjan Kumar and Mr.
Nagmani Tiwari by filing vakalatnama on 07.05.2012, but no counter-affidavit has
been filed in compliance of the order passed by the co-ordinate Bench of this
Court.
The instant writ petition is an old matter of the year, 2009, where a proceeding
of Title Suit No.113 of 2004 has been stayed by co-ordinate Bench of this Court
and this Court has examined the impugned order and the document placed on
record.
Further it appears that though the respondent has appeared through her counsel
on 07.05.2012, but has not filed any counter-affidavit in this matter.
Since the statutory period to file a written statement is 90 days from the date of
appearance of the defendant, but the defendant has not filed written statement
within 90 days, but in view of the judgment passed by Hon'ble Supreme Court in
the case of Kailash vs. Nanku and Ors., reported in 2005 (4) SCC 480 the period
can be extended for filing written statement.
Since the defendant/ petitioner has already filed written statement the same is
accepted, as such, the instant writ petition is allowed.
Further, trial court is directed to frame issue and proceed in accordance with
law without granting any unnecessary adjournment to any of the parties as the
Title Suit is of the year, 2004.
(Kailash Prasad Deo, J.)
R.S.
