MISS TEJASWEE Vs SH SAMUMDER SINGH & ORS -Judgment by Delhi High Court

2024-01-19 Information

$~12

* IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI
% Date of decision: 19th January, 2024
+ CS(OS) 504/2016
MISS TEJASWEE
….. Plaintiff
Through: Ms. Suman Chaudhary, Advocate.
versus
SH SAMUMDER SINGH & ORS
….. Defendants
Through: Mr. Jayant Tripathi and Mr. Dinesh Dahiya, Advocates for D-7.
CORAM:
HON’BLE MS. JUSTICE NEENA BANSAL KRISHNA

J U D G M E N T (oral)
I.A. 4223/2019 (under Section 5 of Limitation Act read with Section 151 CPC on behalf of the plaintiff for Condonation of Delay in re-filing the application under Order VI Rule 17 CPC, 1908)
1. Submissions heard.
2. In view of the submissions made and for the reasons stated in the application, the same is allowed.
3. The application is disposed of accordingly.

I.A. 4222/2019 (under Order VI Rule 17 read with Section 151 CPC, 1908 on behalf of plaintiff for Amendment in the plaint)
4. An application, under Order VI Rule 17 read with Section 151 CPC, 1908 has been filed by the plaintiff for Amendment of the Plaint.
5. It is submitted in the application that a suit for Declaration and Permanent Injunction has been filed on 29.09.2016 and the defendants on service, filed their respective Written Statements on 02.12.2016. The suit is now fixed for arguments on Order VII Rule 11 CPC, 1908 filed by the defendants.
6. In the month of March, 2017 the plaintiff received an application I.A.5191/2017 under Order I Rule 10(2) CPC, 1908 of M/s AKG Consultants Pvt. Ltd. who filed a copy of the Sale Deed dated 18.08.2015, executed by deceased defendant No.1, in favour of M/s AKG Consultants Pvt. Ltd., in respect of his 1/2 share in Khasra No. 36/9/2(3-04) & 12 (4018) situated in the Revenue Estate of Village Malikpur, Delhi and M/s AKG Consultants Pvt. Ltd. sought to be impleaded as defendant No.7. The plaintiff was shocked as this fact was never revealed by defendant No.1 to 6 in their Written Statement that defendant No.1 has sold part of share, illegally and unlawfully, to defendant No.7. Surprisingly, the mutation has also been sanctioned in favour of defendant No.7 despite the fact that the Sale Deed dated 18.08.2015 had been executed in violation of Section 33 of Land Reforms Act.
7. It is further submitted that defendant No.1 died on 27.01.2018 and after his demise, plaintiff No.2 had filed an application/objection before the Tehsildar, Najafgarh, Delhi for mutation in respect of share of deceased defendant No.1 and again surprisingly defendant No.2 and 3 filed a copy of Gift Deeds dated 18.08.2015 before the learned Tehsildar, Najafgarh.
8. The plaintiffs have contended that defendants never disclosed about the execution of the two Gift Deeds dated 18.08.2015. The plaintiff No.1 thereafter obtained the particulars of the Gift DeedS in the month of January, 2018 and obtained the certified copies of the Gift Deeds in the month of May, 2018. The plaintiffs asserted that they had no knowledge about the execution of the Gift Deeds prior to 2018 in favour of defendant no. 2 and 3. They have also come to know about another Gift Deed dated 24.12.2016 in respect of 11/12 share of the deceased defendant No.1 in the land comprising in Khasra No.78/26 (0-5) situated in village Ujwa, Delhi. However, this 5 Biswas of land in village Ujwa has not been included in the suit properties as it was never in the knowledge of the plaintiffs about which they came to know for the first time on the last hearing before the learned SDM/RA, Najafgarh, Delhi.
9. The defendant No.7 has already been impleaded as necessary party on the basis of Sale Deed dated 18.08.2015, executed in its favour by defendant No.1. He had every knowledge about the execution of the Gift Deeds dated 18.08.2015, but he also has failed to disclose about them. The defendant No. 7 after impleadment has filed its Written Statement, but he also has failed to disclose about the execution of the Gift Deed dated 18.08.2015, in favour of defendant No. 2 and 3, by defendant No.1.
10. It is further submitted that the defendant No. 2 and 3 have filed the Mutation application on the basis of alleged Gift Deeds dated 18.08.2015 after long period of execution and after the demise of Shri Samundar Singh, defendant No.1, with ulterior motives. The plaintiff, therefore, seeks permission to amend the plaint to insert paragraph 21E in his plaint in regard to the Gift Deeds dated 18.08.2015 and 24.12.2016, about which the plaintiff had no knowledge. He further wants to insert paragraph 21F to claim that defendant No. 7, despite being aware of the Gift Deeds dated 18.08.2015, intentionally concealed the true facts from the Court. Vide paragraph 21G the plaintiff wants to further assert that neither defendant No.1 to 6 nor defendant No.7 disclosed about the execution of the said Gift Deed dated 18.08.2015. To the similar effect, the plaintiff intends to add paragraph 21H and 21I.
11. The plaintiffs further seek liberty to amend paragraph 23 by adding that the cause of action for seeking relief of declaration further arose in the month of January, 2018 when defendant No.2 and 3 filed the copy of the Gift Deed dated 18.08.2015 before the Tehsildar for the purpose of mutation. Likewise, the valuation as stated in paragraph 24 is sought to be modified and amended.
12. Similarly, Prayer A-1 is sought to be inserted in the Prayer paragraph to claim that the Gift Deed dated 18.08.2015 are null and void.
13. It is submitted in the application that there is no inordinate delay in moving the amendment application and the same may be allowed.
14. The Ld. counsel for defendant No.7 has submitted that he has nothing to say on the proposed amendments.
15. Learned counsel for defendant No.1 to 6 has vehemently contended that the impugned documents were well within the knowledge of the plaintiff since 2015 and the claim sought for avoidance of the Gift Deeds is barred by limitation and the proposed amendments cannot be allowed.
16. Submissions heard.
17. The plaintiff has asserted that she came to know about these Gift Deeds only in January, 2018 when these were filed by defendant No.2 and 3 before the Tehsildar, in mutation proceedings. Any objection in regard to the relief pertaining to Gift Deeds being barred by limitation is an issue on merit, which the defendant is at liberty to take in the Written Statement. At this stage the Court cannot go into the roving inquiry whether the plaintiff came to know about these documents in January, 2018 or in 2015 and whether the relief is barred by limitation.
18. Considering that these proposed amendments are necessary for the adjudication of the suit and have their basis in the plaintiff acquiring knowledge during the pendency of the suit, the amendments as proposed in the application are hereby allowed.
19. The defendants are at liberty to take their objections in regard to limitation and any other defence in their Written Statement. The application is accordingly allowed.
20. The amended plaint be filed within four weeks with a copy to the opposite counsel, who shall file the Written Statement within 30 days thereafter.
21. List before learned Joint Registrar for completion of pleadings and admission/denial of documents, if any, on 24.03.2024.
22. List before this Court for framing of issues on 21.05.2024.

(NEENA BANSAL KRISHNA)
JUDGE
JANUARY 19, 2024
Va/ JN

CS(OS) 504/2016 Page 1 of 5