2017 (3) TMI 335 - HC - Indian Laws

Mesne profit tendered to the respondents/plaintiffs - whether the said amount had been tendered without prejudice to the rights of the appellants/defendants to file/pursue the present appeal? - Held that - appellants/defendants states that he has obtained instructions from the department and filed copies of the orders passed in Ex.No. 125045/2016 which reveal that the decretal amount was tendered by an officer of the appellants/defendants to the authorised representative of the respondents/plaintiffs on 18.11.2016 in the execution petition which was disposed of. At the time of tendering the decretal amount, the appellants/defendants did not reserve their right to pursue the present appeal that was filed on 27.10.2016, but remained under objections and was re-filed on six occasions, only to be listed before the Court on 19.12.2016. By the said date, the decretal amount had already been paid to the respondents/plaintiffs - appeal dismissed.

Summary

Issues:
- Appeal against judgment and decree in a suit for possession, injunction, arrears of rent, and mesne profit.
- Dispute over possession date and arrears of rent/mesne profits.
- Award of mesne profit, maintenance charges, and costs by the trial court.
- Application for condonation of delay in filing the appeal.
- Verification of tendered amount and pursuit of the present appeal.
- Disposal of appeal as infructuous due to payment of decretal amount.
- Refund of court fees for the disposed appeal.

Analysis:
The judgment concerns an appeal challenging a trial court's decision favoring the plaintiffs in a suit involving possession, injunction, arrears of rent, and mesne profit related to a specific property. The appellants disputed the possession date and arrears of rent/mesne profits during the suit. The trial court had awarded mesne profit to the plaintiffs and directed the defendants to account for maintenance charges paid to the Building Maintenance Agency, along with costs of the suit. The appellants filed an appeal against this judgment, seeking condonation of a 176-day delay in filing the appeal.

During the proceedings, the appellants informed the court that the mesne profits awarded by the trial court had already been tendered to the plaintiffs during execution proceedings. The appellants did not reserve their right to pursue the appeal when making the payment. Subsequently, the appeal was deemed infructuous due to the payment of the decretal amount to the respondents. The court disposed of the appeal along with pending applications based on this information.

As a result of the appeal being disposed of as infructuous at the admission stage, the appellants requested a refund of the court fees affixed to the appeal. The court directed the Registry to issue a certificate in favor of the appellant for the refund of court fees amounting to ?16,000. This marked the conclusion of the legal proceedings related to the appeal against the trial court's judgment and decree in the suit for possession and related claims.