Swaroop Dhupar & Anr. v. Raj Kishna Pershad & Ors.
Background
The appellants had approached the Supreme Court challenging an order dated 12.04.2012 passed by the High Court of Andhra Pradesh at Hyderabad in a Civil Revision Petition. While the matter was pending before the Supreme Court, the parties on their own arrived at a settlement and filed a duly signed Settlement Agreement dated 18.10.2016 on record.
Decision Breakdown
The Court granted leave to appeal and then disposed of the appeal strictly in terms of the parties' own Settlement Agreement, which was made part of the judgment itself. The Court directed that the parties must strictly abide by the terms of that settlement, and made no order as to costs.
Lesson Learnt
Parties to a Supreme Court appeal can settle their dispute themselves even while the case is pending, and the Court will simply give legal effect to a genuine, duly signed settlement rather than deciding the underlying merits.