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NON-REPORTABLE IN THE SUPREME COURT OF INDIA CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION

CIVIL APPEAL NOS.1381-1384 OF 2017 [ARISING FROM SPECIAL LEAVE PETITION (C) NOS.3988-3991/2017]

[ARISING FROM CC NOS.2119-2120/2017]

MEERUT KENDRIYA THOK UPBHOKTA SAHAKARI BANDAR  APPELLANT(S)

                               VERSUS VAKIL CHAND JAIN AND ORS ETC.ETC. RESPONDENT(S)

J U D G M E N T KURIAN, J.

Delay condoned. 2. Issue notice. 3. Mr. Anupam Lal Das, learned counsel, appears and accepts notice for the respondents. 4. Leave granted. 5. The appellant is aggrieved by the orders dated 13.01.2017 passed by the High Court dismissing the applications for condonation of delay in filing the review petitions as well as consequential dismissal of the review petitions. 6. The appellants had come up before this Court on an earlier occasion and by order dated 5.8.2016, in SLP(C) Nos.18912-18913/2016, liberty was granted to the appellants to file a review petition before the High Court against the judgment dated 17.3.2016 in Civil  Misc.  Writ  Petition  No.29268/1992  and 31913/1997.

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7. It is seen from the order dated 13.01.2017 passed by  the  High  Court  that  the  applications  were dismissed  for  want  of  prosecution.   We  have  gone through the applications for condonation of delay, it is fairly clear that the main part of the delay is on account  of  the  prosecution  of  the  special  leave petition before this Court in the earlier round.   8. Therefore,  in  order  to  avoid  further  round  of litigation  on  restoration  and  the  condonation  of delay,  we  set  aside  the  order  of  dismissal  for default of the applications for condonation of the delay.  The said applications are restored and the delay in filing the review petitions before the High Court  is  condoned,   we  request  the  High  Court  to dispose of the review petitions on merits.  In order to  enable  the  High  Court  to  do  so,  the  impugned orders  passed  by  the  High  Court  in  the  review petitions are also set aside.  Since it is a long pending matter, we request the High Court to dispose of the review petitions expeditiously and preferably within  a  period  of  one  month  from  the  date  of production of a copy of this order by either side before the High Court. 9. We  record  the  submission  made  by  the  learned counsel for the parties that they will cooperate with the High Court for disposal of the review petitions and will not ask for any adjournment when the matters are posted before the High Court. 10. Status quo, as on today, shall be maintained till the review petitions are disposed of. 11. The appeals are, accordingly, disposed of. 12. We  make  it  clear  that  we  have  not  expressed anything on the merits of the matters.

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13. Pending  application(s),  if  any,  shall  stand disposed of. 14. There shall be no orders as to costs.

.......................J.               [KURIAN JOSEPH]  

.......................J.               [A.M. KHANWILKAR]  

NEW DELHI; FEBRUARY 03, 2017.

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