9911796707
TMI Blog2009 (1) TMI 547X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... made payable to some non-party charitable organizations. Levy of such costs should be avoided. The Delhi High Court Legal Services Committee when it receives the sum of Rs. Two Lakhs as costs from the parties, shall make over the same to the state government as directed in para 38 of the impugned judgment. Let a copy of this order be sent to the Delhi Legal Services Committee, for compliance. X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... sts may be the need of the hour. Whether we should adopt suitably, the western models of awarding actual and more realistic costs is a matter that requires to be debated and should engage the urgent attention of the Law Commission of India. [paras 6, 7] Civil suit - Costs - Award of costs under Section 35 of Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 is discretionary but subject to conditions and limitations as may be prescribed and legal provisions - Compensatory costs for vexatious claims and defences not to exceed Rs. 3000 under Section 35A ibid - Primary object of levying costs is to recompense litigant for expenses incurred in litigation to vindicate or defend his right - Sections 35 and 35A ibid. - When an appellant or a plaintiff has already pai ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... tioner had not approached the court with clean hands and that he had failed to prove any concluded contract for sale. High Court found that the defendants in the suit were also not above board in their conduct. It found that both sides were guilty of having lied on oath and deserved to be prosecuted. On the ground that courts were over-burdened with litigation, the High Court decided that instead of directing prosecution, heavy costs should be levied on both petitioner and respondents "to be paid to the state which spends money on providing the judicial infrastructure." It then proceeded to impose exemplary costs of Rs. 1,00,000/- on the petitioner and Rs. 1,00,000/- on the respondents, and directed that the costs should be deposited with t ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ivate parties. Courts will have to act with care while opening new frontiers. 6. One view has been that the provisions of Sections 35 and 35A CPC do not in any way affect the wide discretion vested in by High Court in exercise of its inherent power to award costs in the interests of justice in appropriate civil cases. The more sound view however is that though award of costs is within the discretion of the court, it is subject to such conditions and limitations as may be prescribed and subject to the provisions of any law for the time being in force; and where the issue is governed and regulated by Sections 35 and 35A of the Code, there is no question of exercising inherent power contrary to the specific provisions of the Code. Furthe ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... we do not propose to interfere with the same, in exercise of our jurisdiction under Article 136, as the order has not resulted in any injustice. It is stated that the respondents have already deposited the costs. The time for deposit of costs by the petitioner is extended at his request by a month from today. 9. We would however like to refer to two aspects of the order of the High Court relating to costs. The first is, whether a court, having reached a conclusion that a party deserves to be prosecuted for perjury, should let him off with what it considers to be a stiff penalty by way of costs, on the ground that courts are overburdened with work. We propose to leave open for the present, this question involving moral and ethical iss ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
|
