- (1.) Petitioners herein filed two civil suits against respondents herein. In the second suit, Punjab Urban Development Authority and Sub Registrar were impleaded as additional defendants. Both the aforesaid suits were consolidated by the trial court. However, the trial court passed judgment and decree in one suit only i.e. in first suit. Defendants preferred first appeal against said judgment and decree of the trial court and prayed that said first suit be remanded for decision of both the suits together by the trial court. On the other hand, one of the plaintiffs filed application that aforesaid first appeal was barred by res judicata, in view of decision in the second suit having attained finality. This claim was based on plaintiffs' plea that in fact, both the suits were decided by the trial court by same common judgment, although particulars of the second suit were not mentioned in the judgment of the trial court.
(2.) Learned lower appellate court, vide impugned judgment dated 02.02.2010, has remanded the first suit to trial court for fresh decision in both the suits because the second consolidated suit was not decided by the trial court, although both the suits were required to be decided together.
(3.) Files of both the civil suits have been requisitioned and perused. Perusal thereof reveals that after consolidation of the two suits, separate zimni orders of the proceedings of various dates of hearing were not recorded in the second suit and zimni orders were recorded in first suit only. In the judgment and decree of trial court, particulars of the first suit have only been mentioned. There is no reference in the records of the trial court about fate of the second suit. Since both the suits had been consolidated, after decision of first suit, files of both the suits were consigned and the second suit is not being proceeded with by the trial court.;