
CUTTACK: Taking exception to the inordinate delay in filing appeal against a trial court order, a single judge bench of Orissa High Court imposed a fine of Rs 25,000 on Shri Jagannath Temple Management Committee with a directive to deposit the amount with the High Court Bar Association Advocates Welfare Trust within two weeks.
The Civil Judge Senior Division (Puri) passed an ex parte order regarding a property of Lord Jagannath at Chudanga Sahi in Puri town. When none appeared on behalf of the temple despite summons the trial court passed the ex parte order on a resident of Puri, Ranjan Kumar Sahoo’s title suit for ownership of the pucca residential house-cum-shop rooms over 34 decimal land on June 21, 1994.
The managing committee filed an appeal against the trial court order along with a plea seeking condonation of the delay in 2019 and the District Judge (Puri) passed order condoning the delay of 25 years on February 7, 2020. The order of District Judge (Puri) was challenged in the high court in a civil revision petition (CRP) by Sahoo on March 12, 2020 and Senior advocate Susanta Kumar Dash argued on his behalf.
Considering the CRP, Justice MS Raman set aside the order on January 24, observing, “The managing committee has approached the court after lapse of more than 25 years. No suggestion even is placed on record before the learned District Judge that action was taken or contemplated to have been taken against the erring officials/members of the managing committee. For this reason also, the order dated 07.02.2020 of the District Judge, Puri is held to be infirm and untenable in the eye of law.”
Justice Raman further observed that the order of the District Judge deserves to be set aside “as no plausible reason was ascribed by the managing committee which prevented it to approach the court within prescribed period.”
In the affidavit of the administrator of temple managing committee, the plea was taken that he could come to know about the Civil Judge Senior Division (Puri)’ order only on September 10, 2019 - after 25 years.