The Suo Motu Limitation Extension Orders passed by the Supreme Court of India are applicable to the filing of written statements in Commercial Courts, the Supreme Court of India recently held in a landmark decision in the case of Prakash Corporates v. Dee Vee Projects Limited dated 14 February 2022. The Supreme Court also set aside the orders made by the High Court of Chhattisgarh on July 9, 2021, and the Commercial Court (District Level) Nava Raipur, Chhattisgarh.
In the instant case titled Prakash Corporates v. Dee Vee Projects Limited, the issue raised for clarification before the Apex Court was:
In light of the orders passed and issued in the wake of COVID-19, may the Prakash Corporates be given greater leeway or was the opportunity to file a written statement in the relevant suit properly declined?
With regard to this issue, the Supreme Court provided an affirmative response to this query. The High Court of Chhattisgarh had issued the administrative order referred to above dated 5 April 2021 for restricting the functioning of the High Court as well as the subordinate Courts, the Supreme Court observed. The High Court had taken note of the alarming scenario caused by the second wave of pandemic. The Trial Court handling the case was already subject to containment measures and was therefore unable to operate normally.
There is no question that the Supreme Court took special and extraordinary measures to advance the cause of justice in the wake of the pandemic, as evidenced by its orders issued on March 23, 2020, May 6, 2020, July 10, 2020, April 27, 2021 and September 23, 2021, all of which are unquestionably applicable to the deadline for filing the written statement.
The Court categorically stated that,
"It would be unrealistic and illogical to assume that while this Court had provided for exclusion of period for institution of the suit and therefore, a suit otherwise filed beyond limitation (if the limitation had expired between 15.03.2020 to 02.10.2021) could still be filed within 90 days from 03.10.2021 but the period for filing written statement, if expired during that period, must operate against the defendant".