Shimla, Sept 26: The Himachal Pradesh High Court has dismissed a petition filed by Tejinder Singh challenging the order of the Additional District Judge-I, Shimla, which had refused to reject a civil suit related to a family property dispute on the grounds of limitation.
Justice Sandeep Sharma, while pronouncing the judgment, upheld the lower court’s order dated March 25, 2025, stating that the plea for rejecting the plaint under Section 3 of the Limitation Act read with Order 7 Rule 11(d) of the CPC had no merit.
The case revolved around two civil suits concerning the same family property—one filed by Pravir Singh in 1997 and another by his father, Govinder Singh, in 2003.
Both sought declarations challenging a family settlement of 1982 and a deed of relinquishment of 1987 executed by their grandfather, S.B. Sarup Singh.
The court noted that after the 1997 suit was dismissed for default and later revived following Supreme Court directions, Govinder Singh had been transposed as the sole plaintiff.
The 2003 suit, meanwhile, stood closed as per the apex court’s order of September 9, 2024.
Justice Sharma held that once Govinder Singh had been transposed as plaintiff in the earlier suit, the question of limitation linked to the 2003 case became irrelevant.
The 1997 suit, he said, was to proceed on its original pleadings and evidence.
The judge also clarified that the suit could not be rejected merely on the basis of limitation since it involved mixed questions of fact and law requiring evidence, and reiterated that the trial court must continue proceedings from the stage where the case had been left earlier.
The petition was dismissed as devoid of merit.
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