Delhi HC Notifies Practice Directions For Petitions Filed Under Article 227 Of Constitution & S. 115 CPC [Read Notification]

Advance Service of Petition

• In the aforementioned petitions, arising from an order in a pending proceeding before a Court subordinate to the High Court, an advance copy of the paper book shall be served upon each opposite party or their counsel (if any) who appeared last for such opposite party in the trial court.
• The requirement of service of advance copy of the paper book is dispensed with in respect of such opposite parties who have been proceeded against ex parte before the trial court.
• In case the opposite party is the Central government, state government, statutory authority, PSU, etc., an advance copy shall be served directly upon the nominated Senior/Standing/Empanelled Counsel and not upon the government/ authority directly.
• The petitioner shall intimate all opposite parties in the matter about the filing and the likely date of listing of the said petition by phone/SMS/email and shall attach written proof of such intimation and service with the petition.
• Once the petition has been cleared for listing, the date of listing of the petition shall be intimated by the petitioner to each opposite party or their counsel (if any) by phone / SMS/ email. He will also be required to give an undertaking to this effect in his application for urgent listing.
• The advocate for the petitioner shall give a written declaration indicating the total number of opposite parties, whether all the opposite parties have been served with the advance copy of the petition, and the mode of their service.
• Where advance service of the petition has been effected personally, the counsel for the petitioner shall ensure that their full names, enrolment numbers, mobile numbers and email addresses are recorded at the Index.
• He will ensure that acknowledgement of service of advance copies of the paper book is endorsed on the first or second page of the filing index. It is further mandated that the person acknowledging receipt of advance copies signs writes his name, the court clerk's registration number and his mobile number, as also the party for whom the acknowledgement is being given.
• He shall also ensure that his court clerks do not effect wrong/false acknowledgements of service in the original pleadings/documents index filed before the Court. Any court clerk who does so shall be liable for strict action.

Service of petition other than by personal service

• Service by UPC will not be accepted by the Registry as adequate proof of service.
• Service on the opposite counsel/party by registered post, speed post or courier service will be accepted by the Registry as adequate proof of service, effective three clear days after the last date of despatch.
• Service on the opposite counsel / party by e-mail will be accepted as adequate proof of service, provided the petition is accompanied with an affidavit of the filing counsel/party to the effect that the e-mail address at which e-mail has been sent is that of the concerned party/counsel and that the e-mail has been delivered and has not bounced back. The affidavit shall also set out the date and time of the e-mail sent and the e-mail address at which it has been sent. The e-mail shall also specify the actual date when the fresh filing is to be listed. In case there are defects and re-filings, the final filing shall be accompanied with affidavit of service of e-mail of the fresh date of listing.

Details of mobile phone numbers and email of opposite parties

• The petitioner shall mention in the memo of parties the name, mobile number and email address of each opposite party or their counsel.
• Where the name, mobile number and email address of each opposite party or their counsel is found mentioned in the memo of parties, the Registry shall enter the same in the data management system of the High Court so that auto-generated SMS /email are also sent to each opposite party or their counsel regarding the filing of the petition, its progress during scrutiny by the Registry, and its date of listing.

Copies of pleadings, order sheets of Trial Court

• The petitioner shall file the relevant pleadings of the original proceedings, relevant order sheets, issues if framed in the case, pleadings of relevant interim applications and documents which the petitioner intends to rely upon. He shall also make every endeavour to place on record pleadings / documents (other than case law) referred to in the impugned order.
• The Registry shall not insist upon the petitioner to file certified copies of aforementioned documents and self-certified copies to the effect that each such document is the true copy of its respective original in the file of the trial court, shall be acceptable.
• The Registry shall not list any such petition before the Court which is not accompanied with any of the documents mentioned above.

Appearance on the first date of listing

• Opposite party which desires to oppose any of the prayers made in the petition or in the interim application will appear personally or through counsel to make submissions.
• In case any opposite party does not appear before the Court upon advance service of the petition, the Court may not issue any further notice to such opposite party and may pass any order(s) as it may deem fit and proper in the facts and circumstances of the case.

No inherent right of any opposite party to file a reply to the petition

• Ordinarily, the petitions may be decided on the basis of the grounds raised in the petition and the record filed with the same.
• Opposite party shall not be entitled to file a reply to such petition, as a matter of right. It shall, however be entitled to produce copies of any relevant record intended to be relied upon, at the time of hearing. In exceptional circumstances, the Court may permit an opposite party to file a reply.

The court has directed all the Officers and Dealing Assistants at the Filing Counter to ensure strict compliance of these directions and has asked them to not list petitions that are non-compliant.

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