Today, in a Judgment passed by the Supreme Court it has been reiterated that in the absence of pleading, no amount of evidence will help a party in a civil suit.
Background of the case:-
In the suit in question, the petitioner had challenged the adoption deed that was executed by his father in favour of the defendant.
Counsel for the petitioner had argued that necessary formalities were not followed for adoption, and the claim of adoption was incorrect and false.
After the evidence was closed, an application was filed by the plaintiff for summoning the 2001 leave records of Ramesh Chandra Singh from Rajput Regiment Centre Fatehgarh.
As per the application, the father of the defendant Ramesh Chandra Singh was not present during the adoption ceremony as he was away on duty on the date when the adoption ceremony took place.
The application in question was dismissed by the Trial Court on the ground that there was no pleading regarding this claim in the plaint and also because the application was filed at the belated stage.
An appeal was filed, and the District Court, as well as the Hon’ble High Court, upheld the order.
Aggrieved, the plaintiff moved the Supreme Court.
Reasoning of the Supreme Court
A three-judge bench comprising Hon’ble Justice Ashok Bhushan, Hon’ble Justice R. Subash Reddy and Hon’ble Justice MR Shah agreed with the decision of the High Court and observed that as per the well-settled law, in the absence of pleading, any amount of evidence will not help the party.
The Bench observed that the adoption ceremony in question was mentioned in the deed of adoption; therefore, there was no reason for raising the specific plea in the suit, and there was no reason to file the application at the belated stage.
Accordingly, the appeal was dismissed.
Case Details:-
Title: Biraji vs Surya Prakash
Case No. C.A.Nos.4883-4884 of 2017
Date of Order: 03.11.2020
Coram: Hon’ble Justice Ashok Bhushan, Hon’ble Justice R. Subash Reddy and Hon’ble Justice MR Shah
