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February 2015

Frivolous Litigation – State as a Litigant/party – Expenses to be paid personally by officials concerned:

By Dr. K. Shivaram Senior Advocate Ajay R. Singh Advocate
Reading Time 1 mins
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Haryana Dairy Development Co-op Federation Ltd. vs. Jagdish Lal; (2014) 3 SCC 156 (SC)

In the instant case, an amount of Rs. 8,724/- was to be paid to the Respondent employee as reimbursement of his medical claim. The Petitioner Haryana Dairy Development Cooperative Federation Limited filed a SLP before Supreme Court. The Court deprecated such practice of the petitioner corporation treating the litigation as a luxury. The corporation must have spent on amount for filing this petition in excess of the amount due to the respondent.

The Law Commission of India in its 155th report has observed that what further aggravates the position is the number of pending litigations relating to trivial matters or petty claims, some of which has been hanging for more than 15 years. It hardly needs mention that in many such cases money spent on litigation is far in excess of the stakes involved.

The court directed that the expenses of the litigation shall be incurred by the Managing Director personally who has signed affidavit in support of the petition and it shall not be taken from the Federation.

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