Rama Narang vs Ramesh Narang & Anr

The Minutes of the Consent Order referred to in the order dated 12th December, 2001 was as an agreement between the parties, which was duly executed by them.

The bone of contention between the parties is primarily the control of a company known as NIHL. The consent minutes provided inter alia:-

294. In that case, a suit had been filed for ejectment by the respondent of the appellant. The suit was not contested. Terms of compromise were drafted and a decree passed in terms of the compromise. One of the clauses of the compromise contained an undertaking of the appellant to remove the image of the deity which had been installed by the appellant together with the structures around the deity on demand by the respondent-landlord. However, when the respondent called upon the appellant to remove the image, the appellant refused. The respondent then filed an application before the High Court to commit the appellant for contempt of Court on the ground that he had broken an undertaking which had been given to the Court that he would remove the image when called upon to do so by the respondent. The Single Judge allowed the application and committed the appellant holding that he had violated the order of the Court. On appeal, however, the Division Bench differed with the views expressed by the learned Single Judge. It was held that the clause which recorded the appellant's undertaking to remove the image did not state that the defendant undertook "to the Court" to remove the image. The word "undertakes" was construed to mean "formal promise or pledge". It was held that the appellant had thus merely promised or pledged the respondent to remove the image. The Court was no party to that promise at that stage. It was also said that:

The appeal was accordingly allowed and the order passed under Section 2(b) Act set aside.

In the present case, the consent terms arrived at between the parties was incorporated in the orders passed by the Court on 12th December 2001 and 8th January 2002. The decree as drawn up shows that order dated 8th January, 2002 was to be "punctually observed and carried into execution by all concerned". A violation of the terms of the consent order would amount to a violation of the Court's orders dated 12th December 2001 and 8th January 2002 and, therefore be punishable under the first limb of Section 2(b) of the Contempt of Courts Act, 1971. The question whether the respondents should not be held guilty of contempt because of any earlier confusion in the law reflected in the case of Babu Ram Gupta (supra), is a question which must be left for decision while disposing of the contempt petition on merits. It may be argued as an extenuating or mitigating factor once the respondents are held guilty of contempt. The submission does not pertain to the maintainability of the petition for contempt. The preliminary objection raised by the respondents regarding the non-maintainability of the petition for contempt is, for the reasons stated, dismissed. The issue as to whether the respondents have in fact acted in violation of the terms of the consent order will now have to be decided on merits. Let the matter be listed for this purpose. Costs of this petition will be costs in the contempt petition.