- (1.)Rule. Rule made returnable forthwith. Heard the matter by consent of learned counsel appearing for both the parties.
(2.)The petitioners challenge legality and validity of impugned order dated 22.10.2013, passed by learned 5th Joint Civil Judge Junior Division, Akola, in the pending Regular Civil Suit No.667 of 2009.
(3.)The facts of the case in brief, thus:
It appears that the petitioners/defendants moved an application under Order VI Rule 17 read with Section 151 of the Civil Procedure Code with a prayer for permission to amend the written statement in the suit. The prayer was strongly objected on behalf of the respondents/plaintiffs as according to the respondents/plaintiffs the plaint was instituted on 14.10.2009 and written statement by the petitioners/defendants was filed on 8.2.2010. While learned trial Judge was pleased to frame issues on 22.6.2011 and pursuant to examination-in-chief which was already filed by the respondents/plaintiffs on 12.7.2010, the plaintiffs were to be cross examined. According to the respondents/plaintiffs by way of an after thought, on 21.8.2013 a belated application for amendment of the written statement was moved which was nothing but replica of the earlier written statement and defendants tried to adopt delay tactics. When strong objection to amendment was raised in details, the learned trial Judge observed that law need not be pleaded by the petitioners/defendants and the amendment as proposed by the petitioners/defendants was not at all necessary. It was further observed that no prejudice would be caused to the petitioners/defendants if amendment as proposed is rejected because all the recitals and contents of the proposed amendment were already present in the written statement which was filed in the suit. Thus, the trial Court felt that intention of the petitioners/defendants was just to cause the delay in final disposal of the suit. That being so, the trial Court directed the petitioners/defendants to conduct crossexamination of the respondents/plaintiffs while rejecting the prayer for amendment in the written statement.