Beautifully Written, Enjoyed Reading, One Of The Best: Supreme Court Showers Praises On A Bombay High Court’s Order While Dismissing SLP Against It
The Supreme Court on Monday appreciated and showered praises on a well-written interim order passed by the Bombay High Court, while refusing to entertain an SLP filed against the same.
The Court was considering an SLP against an interim order passed by Justice Sharmila U. Deshmukh of the Bombay High Court, thereby lifting the operation of lis pendens on a disputed property in a long-standing family dispute.
A Bench of Justice Surya Kant and Justice Dipankar Datta remarked, “Very fair, just and equitable order. Absolutely correct order in law".
After dismissing the SLP, Justice Surya Kant said, "I enquired with my brother (Justice Datta) about who is the Judge (of Bombay High Court who passed the order)? Because my brother had been Chief Justice (of Bombay High Court). He said that she is from the Bar, and it is he who recommended her name. One of the best Judgments.. when you enjoy reading the Judgment of the High Court. There are some torturous Judgments that you read, but this is one of the Judgments I really enjoyed reading. Beautifully written Judgment… .”
Senior Advocate Siddharth Dave appeared for the Petitioners in the SLP. Senior Advocate Ranjit Kumar appeared for the Respondent, but did not have to make any submission.
During the brief hearing, the Bench remarked that the Petitioners had already received the benefit of their share under an interim award and could not now prevent the respondents from dealing with theirs. The Bench stressed that the arrangement recorded by the Bombay High Court was only interim and would not affect the merits of the pending appeal. The Court also granted liberty to the parties to request the High Court for an expedited hearing of the appeal.
The Court remarked during the hearing that the Petitioners had taken their share in terms of the interim award and that they are making arguments after taking their share. The Court clarified that the observations in the order will have no bearing on the merits of the case.
The order under challenge was passed by Justice Sharmila Deshmukh on April 30, 2025. The case arises out of a property dispute following an Interim Award issued in 1975, which had divided assets between two groups within a family.
The central issue was whether the notice of lis pendens, originally registered in 1995 and renewed in later years, should continue to operate over a property in Mumbai that had been allotted to one group of the family under an interim arbitration award from 1975.
The Plaintiffs, who had also received properties under the same interim award, argued that the appeal against the dismissal of their suit was still pending and thus the lis pendens should remain. They claimed that the dispute over valuation and distribution of assets was unresolved, making the restriction on the defendants necessary.
The High Court, however, noted that both sides had already acted upon the interim award. Properties allotted to each group had been either alienated or surrendered, and the Plaintiffs themselves had disposed of their share. In this changed situation, the Court found that no real right to immovable property was left in dispute, and what remained was a claim for monetary compensation based on unequal distribution, not one requiring protection of property rights.
The Court held that the doctrine of lis pendens no longer applied because there was no pending issue directly involving immovable property. Allowing the Plaintiffs to continue restricting the Defendants’ ability to deal with their property, while enjoying full freedom over their own, would be inequitable.
The Court therefore allowed the Defendants to proceed with dealing in their property and directed the removal of the lis pendens notice from the Sub-Registrar’s records.
Cause Title: Karan Arjan Khiani & Ors. V. Nari Rijhumal Khiani & Ors. (SLP(C) No. 15195/2025)
Click here to read/download the Bombay High Court's Order
