IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM PRESENT : THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE HARUN-UL-RASHID THURSDAY, THE 29TH MAY 2008 / 8TH JYAISHTA 1930 CRP.No. 1329 of 2004(B) ----------------------- CMA.2/1999 of ADDL.DISTRICT COURT-I,MAVELIKKARA IA.2009/97 IN OS.249/1985 of MUNSIFF COURT,HARIPAD .................... REVN. PETITIONER: APPELLANT/PETITIONER -------------------------------------- MOHAN DAS, RESIDING AT SAIKRIPA MANNAMCHERRY, KALAVOOR, ARATTUPUZHA, HARIPPAD, ALLEPPEY. BY ADVS. SRI.V.G.ARUN SRI.T.R.HARIKUMAR RESPONDENT: RESPONDENT/2ND CR.PETITIONER ----------------------------------------- CISSILY FERNANDEZ, ERAKATTU PUTHUVALIL MANGALAM MURI, ARRATTUPUZHA, HARIPAD. BY ADV. SRI.S.SREEKUMAR THIS CIVIL REVISION PETITION HAVING BEEN FINALLY HEARD ON 29/05/2008, THE COURT ON THE SAME DAY PASSED THE FOLLOWING: HARUN-UL-RASHID, J. -------------------------------------------- C.R.P. NO. 1329 OF 2004 -------------------------------------------- Dated this the 29th day of May, 2008 ORDER The revision petitioner is the second defendant in O.S. No.249 of 1985 on the file of the Munsiff's Court, Haripad. The application, I.A. No.2009 of 1997 filed by him under Order IX Rule 13 C.P.C. ended in dismissal and it was subsequently confirmed by the appellate court in C.M.A. No.2 of 1999. According to the revision petitioner who is a practising lawyer at Alappuzha, he never received any summons or notice in respect of the suit and he came to know about the proceedings only during November, 1997. It is his case that on enquiry he got the information that he was declared ex parte on 2.11.1987 and the suit was decreed on 13.1.1992. He, therefore, prayed for setting aside the ex parte decree passed against him in O.S. No.249 of 1985. 2. The application to set aside the ex parte decree was seriously opposed by the contesting respondents. They pointed out that the suit itself was filed by one of the brothers of the petitioner in the year 1985 for C.R.P. NO.1329/2004 2 declaration of title and recovery of possession. According to them, the defendants in the suit are the petitioner's brothers and sisters and the legal heirs of his deceased brothers and sisters. Altogether there are 24 defendants in the suit. Finding that direct service of summons was not possible, the court ordered substituted service to several defendants including the revision petitioner. Publication was effected in the year 1987. 3. The trial court appreciated the oral and documentary evidence adduced by the parties. The courts below came to the conclusion that the averment that the revision petitioner had no knowledge about the pendency of the suit till 1997 is not true. Relying on Exts.B3, B3(a) and other documents, the fact finding courts came to the conclusion that the revision petitioner was aware of the proceedings and that it was he who was helping his brothers to conduct the case. The courts below also noticed the fact that the 19th defendant in the suit filed an appeal as A.S. No.115 of 1992 before the Additional District Court, Mavelikkara which was dismissed in the year 1996. The courts below also noticed the fact that the revision petitioner had no case that he was unaware of the pendency of the appeal nor that he was not served with summons in the case. Therefore, the courts below disbelieved the version of the revision petitioner that he C.R.P. NO.1329/2004 3 came to know about the suit proceedings only in November, 1997. The trial court entered the finding that the revision petitioner was aware of the proceedings right from the year 1989 and, therefore, the application is filed beyond the period prescribed and highly belated. 4. In the facts and circumstances discussed above, I am of the view that the revision is filed without any bona fides and that it is an attempt to reopen the case at any cost. No grounds are made out to interfere with the findings entered by the courts below. The Civil Revision Petition is without any merit. It is accordingly dismissed with costs of Rs.3000/-. (HARUN-UL-RASHID, JUDGE) sp/ C.R.P. NO.1329/2004 4 HAURN-UL-RASHID, J. C.R.P. NO. 1329/2004 O R D E R 29th MAY, 2008