The Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh High Court has held that the Lok Adalat Award becomes non-executable once fresh round of litigation is initiated under Domestic Violence Act and provisions of Criminal Procedure Code on the same claim.

The Court was considering a Petition challenging the award passed by the Lok Adalat as also order passed in the Execution Petition.

The single bench of Justice Sanjay Dhar observed, "...Once respondent No.1 has taken resort to filing of fresh petitions under the provisions of DV Act and Cr. P.C. against the petitioner and even obtained orders of interim maintenance in her favour, she cannot seek recovery of maintenance on the basis of compromise arrived at by the parties before the Lok Adalat in similar proceedings initiated in the first round of litigation...."

The Petitioner was represented by Advocate Javaid Ahmad Parray while the Respondent was represented by Senior Advocate Z. A. Shah.

Facts of the Case

Respondent No.1 and Respondent No.2, Wife and minor daughter of the Petitioner filed a petition under Section 12 of Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act as also a petition under Section 125 of the Cr. P. C, besides lodging police cases against the petitioner as a result of matrimonial discord. During pendency of the proceedings, a Compromise was arrived at between the parties before the Lok Adalat and on the basis of said compromise, an award came to be passed by the Lok Adalat. According to the Petitioner, initially Respondent No.1 resumed her matrimonial ties with him pursuant to the said compromise but she left his company along with her minor daughter in the month of March, 2022 and filed second round of litigation. Besides, she also filed an application for execution of award passed by the Lok Adalat.

The Petitioner challenged the impugned order on the grounds that once the Respondents have already filed Petitions under Section 12 of the DV Act and Section 125 of the Cr. P. C., the compromise and the award rendered redundant. It was further contended that it was not open to the Executing Court to entertain the execution petition in respect of award once the Respondents had alleged that there was breach of terms of the compromise.

Reasoning By Court

The Court stated that the question for its determination is as to whether the award, in the face of subsequent round of litigation, is executable or not and accordingly held that the second round of litigation left the Lok Adalat award redundant

"If respondent No.1 was interested in getting the award of the Lok Adalat executed as against the petitioner, then she should not have initiated a fresh round of litigation against the petitioner by filing petitions under Section 12 of the DV Act and Section 125 of the Cr. P. C.," the Court observed.

"If at all the petitioner had resiled from the terms of the compromise dated 17.04.2021, the option available with the respondents was either to get the award of the Lok Adalat executed or to seek revival of the earlier petitions filed by them under Section 12 of the DV Act and Section 125 of the Cr. P. C. The respondents are not only seeking execution of the award passed by the Lok Adalat on the basis of the compromise arrived at by the parties in the earlier petitions but they have also resorted to fresh round of litigation against the petitioner by filing petitions under Section 12 of the DV Act and Section 125 of the Cr. P. C. Both these proceedings i.e. execution of the award passed by the Lok Adalat on the basis of the compromise, which, admittedly, has been observed in breach by the parties, as also the fresh petitions filed under Section 12 of the DV Act and Section 125 of the Cr. P. C cannot be continued by the respondents," the Court further observed.

The Petition was accordingly allowed.

Cause Title: Tariq Wali vs. Benish Aijaz And Anr.

Appearances:

Petitioner- Advocate Javaid Ahmad Parray

Respondent- Senior Advocate Z. A. Shah, Advocate Hanan

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Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh High CourtJustice Sanjay Dhar

Sheetal Joon