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Chintaman Namdev Patil (Dead) v. Sukhdev Namdev Patil & Anr.

Civil Appeal · Neutral citation not assigned (Civil Appeal No. 7991 of 2015)Decided 28 Sept 2015
Civil Appeal No. 7991 of 2015
Justice J. Chelameswar · Justice Abhay Manohar Sapre

Background

This order sends the case back; it does not decide the dispute. The parties disputed ownership of land in a suit for declaration and injunction, which reached the Aurangabad Bench of the Bombay High Court as Second Appeal No. 332 of 2007. The High Court framed two substantial questions of law in the second appeal.

Decision Breakdown

This is not a final decision on the dispute. The Court found that the High Court's judgment had failed to properly address the two substantial questions of law it had itself framed. It set aside that judgment and sent the second appeal back to the High Court to be decided afresh on merits in accordance with law. It stated that it had not examined the merits of the issues.

Lesson Learnt

There is no final ruling yet on who owns the disputed land. A High Court deciding a second appeal must properly answer the substantial questions of law it has framed.

Official source (sci.gov.in)View Judgment (PDF)

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