BHUVANESHWAR PRASAD Vs. STATE OF BIHAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) After the writ petition was filed on 11/01/1994, it came up for admission on 21/01/1994 and a Division Bench of this Court in the presence of the learned lawyer appearing for the State respondent gave three weeks' time to the Government Pleader No. 1 to seek instructions and file counter-affidavit so that the application may be disposed of at the stage of admission itself and directed the parties to maintain status quo as of that date in respect of the disputed land/house in question.

(2.) Thereafter the matter had been appearing before the Division Bench of the Court on several dates. The matter appeared on 18-2-1994, 25-3-1994, 29-4-1994 and on all those dates time was given to the respondents' Counsel to file the counter affidavit but it was never filed.

(3.) After re-opening of the Court after summer vacation, the matter was placed before this Division Bench on 24/06/1994. No affidavit was filed even on that date. As such the Court took an exception to the recalcitrant stand taken by the learned lawyer appearing for the State respondents in not filing the affidavit despite the repeated directions of the Court. As the learned State counsel, wanted further time, we felt that cost must be imposed. To that observation of the Court, the learned State Counsel took a rather defiant attitude and wanted the court to dispose of the matter without any counter affidavit. As such the Court is compelled to dispose of the matter without any counter affidavit.