Summary

The plaintiffs in a civil suit in Bhola applied to the Senior Assistant Judge for interrogation of the defendants and to withdraw the suit from the stage of hearing, arguing that the defendants' written statement asserted that the suit suffered from defect of parties. The trial court rejected the applications and the District Judge, Bhola affirmed that order in revision. The plaintiffs then obtained a Rule from the High Court Division under section 115(4) of the Code of Civil Procedure. Both courts below had found that all necessary parties were impleaded, and counsel for the opposite parties conceded that he would not press the issue of defect of parties at trial. The High Court Division held that no cause of action regarding defect of parties subsisted and that the suit should be disposed of expeditiously. Without ruling on the interrogation applications, it disposed of the Rule, vacated the interim stay and directed the trial court to dispose of the suit within six months.

Issues

1. Q1

   Whether the plaintiffs' applications for interrogation and to withdraw the suit from the hearing stage had to be allowed because the written statement alleged a defect of parties.

Key points

• Where both courts below found that all necessary parties had been impleaded, and the defendants conceded they would not press defect of parties at trial, no cause of action on that point subsisted.
• The Rule was disposed of on that basis, without a decision on the merits of the plaintiffs' applications for interrogation.
• The suit should be disposed of expeditiously, and the trial court was directed to dispose of it within six months of receiving the order.
• The ad-interim stay granted when the Rule was issued was vacated.

Law considered

Code of Civil Procedure, 1908, section 115(4)