A. Municipal Corporation Act, 1956 (Madhya Pradesh)—Section 307(5)—Illegal Construction—Removal—Where respondents constructed on government land without proving ownership or obtaining requisite permission, despite ample opportunity, the construction was held illegal—The Court ordered its removal in accordance with the statutory mandate under Section 307(5). (Paras 9, 10, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21) B. Civil Procedure Code, 1908—Section 115—Revisional Jurisdiction—The High Court may exercise revisional powers where the trial court's reasoning disregards binding precedent or fails to consider material facts, thereby causing miscarriage of justice. (Para 16) C. Civil Procedure Code, 1908—Order 9 Rule 7—Ex Parte Proceedings—Respondents, after rejection of their application un...

A. Civil Procedure Code, 1908—Section 151—Inherent Powers—Restoration of Execution Proceedings—Execution proceedings dismissed for want of prosecution without being listed for hearing cannot be treated as dismissed under Order 21 Rule 105(2) CPC—In such circumstances, an application for restoration under Section 151 CPC is maintainable. (Paras 11, 12, 13, 14, 16) B. Civil Procedure Code, 1908—Section 151, Order 21 Rule 105—Limitation for Restoration—Though no specific limitation period is prescribed for restoration applications under Section 151 CPC, the power must be exercised within a reasonable time—By analogy, a period of 12 years, as under Article 65 of the Limitation Act for recovery of possession, may be considered reasonable for such restoration. (Paras 19, 23, 25, 26) C....

A. Motor Vehicles Act, 1988—Section 157—Transfer of Insurance on Vehicle Ownership Transfer—Third-Party Risk—Upon transfer of ownership of a motor vehicle, the certificate of insurance is deemed transferred to the transferee by operation of law, insofar as third-party risks are concerned—This applies even if the insurer is not informed and the policy is not formally endorsed in the transferee’s name. (Relevant facts) B. Motor Vehicles Act, 1988—Sections 157(1) & 157(2)—Obligation to Inform Insurer—Effect on Liability—While the transferee is statutorily obligated to notify the insurer within 14 days for updating the insurance certificate and policy, non-compliance does not absolve the insurer of liability towards third-party claims arising from the transferred vehicle. (Rel...

A. CPC, 1908—Order 8 Rule 6-A—Counterclaim by Defendant—A counterclaim may be filed based on a cause of action arising before or after the filing of the suit but must be prior to the delivery of defence or expiry of time for such delivery—Though not absolutely barred after filing the written statement, courts retain discretion, considering delay, justification, and potential prejudice. (Para 6) B. CPC, 1908—Order 8 Rule 6-A(1)—Filing Stage Counterclaim must be filed before delivery of defence or before expiry of time to file defence. (Para 7, 12) C. CPC, 1908—Order 8 Rule 6-A r/w Order 8 Rule 1(3)—Rejection of Counterclaim and Related Documents—Where a counterclaim arises from a cause subsequent to the written statement and framing of issues—especially post-judgment in a r...

Constitution of India—Article 226—A minor petitioner sought admission to Class I under the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009 (RTE Act)—The petitioner was initially selected through a lottery but admission was canceled on the ground that the petitioner’s residence was beyond the prescribed 5 km radius from the school, as per the RTE Rules, 2010—The petitioner challenged this, contending the distance was wrongly calculated and that a subsequent rent deed showed residence within 3 km of the school—The respondents argued that the original application form, including the declared address, could not be altered and that admission rules and quotas had been correctly followed—The court held that the relevant distance for eligibility under the RTE Act is the radius, not road dista...

Civil Procedure Code, 1908—Order 39 Rules 1 & 2, Section 151—Temporary Injunction and Status Quo—Mutation Proceedings—Property Law—Co-ownership—Constitution of India, Article 227—The High Court quashed the appellate order permitting partial construction on disputed property, restoring the trial court’s status quo order—The defendants had repeatedly obtained mutation orders based on a contested will, often without impleading all legal heirs or disclosing previous adverse rulings; such orders were later set aside—Allowing construction prior to determination of title and validity of the will would cause irreparable harm to plaintiffs and lead to multiplicity of litigation—The Court emphasized that altering property status without clear title could prejudice the successful ...

Registration Act, 1908—Sections 17—A petition under Article 227 challenging the trial court’s admission of an unregistered sale deed as evidence, the High Court held that under Section 17 of the Registration Act, 1908, sale deeds affecting immovable property must be compulsorily registered—Section 49 of the Act bars the admissibility of unregistered documents in suits concerning immovable property, except when used for collateral purposes in suits for specific performance or collateral transactions not requiring registration—The suit in question sought declaration and injunction, making the unregistered sale deed inadmissible for primary purposes—Reliance was placed on precedents including Gordhan v. Dinesh and Avinash Kumar Chauhan, which affirm that unregistered documents cannot be used as eviden...

Payment of Gratuity Act, 1972—Section 2(e); M.P. School Education Service (Teaching Cadre) Conditions and Recruitment Rules, 2018—Absorption of Panchayat Teachers into State Government Service—The exclusion of State Government employees from the definition of “employee” under Section 2(e) of the Payment of Gratuity Act, 1972, applies only if gratuity is payable under another Act or Rules—Teachers (Shiksha Karmis/Adhyapaks) initially appointed under Panchayats and later absorbed into the State Government’s School Education Department under the 2018 Recruitment Rules are entitled to gratuity under the 1972 Act, especially when the M.P. Civil Services (Pension) Rules, 1976, do not apply to their service, such as post-2005 absorptions or non-pensionable Panchayat service—Rule 18(2) of the 2018 R...

Waqf Act, 1995—Sections 83, 85—Jurisdiction—Eviction Suit—Civil Court vs—Waqf Tribunal—Civil Revision under Section 115 CPC—The defendants filed a Civil Revision challenging the trial court’s rejection of their application under Order 7 Rule 11 CPC to dismiss a suit for eviction filed by the plaintiff over a Waqf property—The trial court had held it had jurisdiction to try the eviction suit relying on Apex Court decisions in Faseela M. and Ramesh Gobind Ram—The revisional court examined the provisions of the Waqf Act, particularly Sections 83 and 85, which confer exclusive jurisdiction on the Waqf Tribunal for disputes relating to Waqf property, including eviction suits, and bar Civil Court jurisdiction—The revisional court referred to the recent Supreme Court judgment in R...

Hindu Marriage Act, 1955—Sections 21—Civil Procedure Code, 1908—Order 9 Rule 13—In this civil revision, the wife challenged the maintainability of her husband's application under Order 9 Rule 13 CPC seeking to set aside an ex-parte divorce decree granted under the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 (HM Act)—The trial court had rejected the wife's objections, and the revision petition sought to overturn that decision—The High Court upheld the trial court’s order, holding that the husband's application under Order 9 Rule 13 CPC was maintainable despite the availability of an appeal under Section 28 of the HM Act—The Court clarified that Order 9 Rule 13 CPC permits setting aside an ex-parte decree not only for non-service of summons but also upon showing sufficient cause for non-appearance&md...