Family Law - Custody of Children - Guardian and Wards Act, 1890 - Sections 8, 12, 25 - Custody granted to father despite pending FIR for abetment of wife's suicide - Acquittal from charges pivotal in deciding custody - Held, FIR under Section 306 IPC against the father cannot alone be a ground to deprive him of the custody of his children, especially when acquitted - Welfare of the children re...
Cooperative Societies - Recovery of Loan from Estate of Deceased - Section 22 of Punjab Cooperative Societies Act, 1961 - Rule 17(2) of Punjab Cooperative Agricultural Development Bank Rules, 1959 - Time-barred recovery - Borrower deceased on 27.12.2004 - Recovery notice issued on 17.10.2011 held time-barred - Debt recovery permissible only within two years of borrower's death - Resultant awar...
Civil Procedure - Amendment of Pleadings - Order 6 Rule 17 CPC - Amendment in the written statement cannot be filed under the guise of responding to an amended plaint - The correct procedure requires a specific application for amendment indicating the changes to be made - Held, amendment to the written statement must follow a formal application process as stipulated by Order 6 Rule 17. [Paras 1, 7...
Registration of Compromise Decree - Section 17 of Registration Act, 1908 - Compromise decree relating to immovable property subject to previous litigation - Not required to be registered - First Appellate Court's decision erroneous - Compromise decree not required to be registered unless it involves property not subject matter of the suit - Regular Second Appeal allowed. [Paras 3, 10]
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Commercial Law – Pre-Institution Mediation – Applicability of Section 12A of the Commercial Courts Act, 2015 – The court reaffirmed that Section 12A mandates pre-institution mediation unless the suit “contemplates” urgent interim relief. The trial court had rejected the plaint on the grounds that pre-institution mediation was not exhausted. The appellate court set asi...
Criminal Law - Dowry Death - Section 304-B IPC - Delay in Lodging FIR - Case of prosecution cannot be discarded solely on delay grounds - Evidence led by prosecution found trustworthy and reliable - Delay of few hours in lodging FIR not significant - FIR contents show clear dowry demand by appellants - Appeal dismissed. [Paras 38, 42, 43]
Medical Evidence - Cause of Death - Section 30...
Contract Law - Forfeiture of Earnest Money - Second Appeal - Section 100 CPC - Defendant not required to prove loss or issue notice before forfeiting earnest money if plaintiff fails to perform contract - Written contract terms binding - Defendant only needs to prove plaintiff’s lack of readiness and willingness to perform - Appeal allowed, trial court's judgment restored. [Paras 2, 8]
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Specific Relief - Mandatory Injunction - Section 39 of Specific Relief Act - Breach of Obligation - Personal and not inheritable - Licensor died after filing the suit, extinguishing the license - Relationship between licensor and licensee does not continue post demise of licensor - License is not inheritable like tenancy - Decree of mandatory injunction set aside. [Paras 1, 6, 13, 14, 15]
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Evidence Law - Secondary Evidence - Sections 63 and 65 of Evidence Act - Entries in Civil Court register not considered secondary evidence of judgments and decree - Registers only contain net results, not verbatim contents - Secondary evidence includes certified copies, copies made from the original, or oral accounts by someone who has seen the original - Application to prove judgments and decree ...
Constitutional Law - Article 226 - Hindu Marriage Act - Section 12 - Punjab Civil Service Rules - Rule 6.17(3)(a) - Family Pension - Widow Remarriage - Void Marriage - Widow’s family pension stopped due to remarriage - Remarriage annulled by decree due to fraud - Family pension restored - Held, void marriage not considered remarriage for the purpose of stopping family pension. [Paras 16, 17]...