Jha HC | Court abstains from interfering on finding no error apparent on the face of record under the garb of Article 227

Jharkhand High Court: The Bench of Sujit Narayan Prasad, J. disposed of a petition seeking to make amendment in the plaint as

Jharkhand High Court: The Bench of Sujit Narayan Prasad, J. disposed of a petition seeking to make amendment in the plaint as stipulated under schedule to the petition.

To state the facts briefly the petitioner had filed for declaration of right and title over the suit property in which the respondents had appeared and filed written statements. Also a petition under Order 6 Rule 17 has been filed for incorporating in the plaint: “during the pendency of the suit the defendant on the strength of lathis and muscle man encroached suit land and constructed house over the portion of the suit land illegally which is liable to be removed by the process of the court.”

The trial Court was of the opinion that such amendment would change the nature of the suit since the amendment that was sought for was in the nature of seeking a direction for removing the defendant from the land while the suit was for a declaration of right and title over the land in question. Also, the fact that the petitioner had knowledge of the said encroachment was considered by the Court.

The Court placed reliance on Mani Nariman Daruwala v. Phiroz N. Bhatena, (1991) 3 SCC 141 and Laxmikant Revchand Bhojwani v. Pratapsing Mohansingh Pardeshiv, (1995) 6 SCC 576, while enumerating the principles of exercising the jurisdiction of superintendence under Article 227 of the Constitution. And further held that, “In exercise of its power of superintendence High Court cannot interfere to correct mere errors of law or fact or just because another view than the one taken by the tribunals or courts subordinate to it, is a possible view. In other words, the jurisdiction has to be very sparingly exercised”. Also opined that, in the scope of Order 6 Rule 17 and the scope of Article 227 of the Constitution of India, the order needs no interference since there is no error apparent on the face of the record. [Shyam Sunder Saw v. Manoj Yadav, 2019 SCC OnLine Jhar 233, Order dated 04-02-2019]

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