LI Network
Published on: 21 August 2023 at 11:25 IST
The Supreme Court of India has ruled that an order dismissing an appeal without providing reasons cannot be considered a binding precedent in Experion Developers Pvt Ltd vs Himanshu Dewan and Sonali Dewan .
The Court clarified this principle in a recent judgment while disposing of an appeal filed by M/s. Experion Developers Private Limited against the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission’s judgment.
The bench comprising Justices Sanjiv Khanna, Bela M. Trivedi, and Ujjal Bhuyan observed that precedents cannot decide questions of fact.
The case involved the appellant’s contention that a previous Supreme Court order in Pawan Gupta v. Experion Developers Private Limited would foreclose the arguments raised in the current case.
The previous order applied the doctrine of merger, the principle of res judicata, and the rule of precedential value.
The Court referred to various decisions, including Kunhayammed v. State of Kerala, Khoday Distilleries Limited v. Sri Mahadeshwara Sahakara Sakkare Karkhane Limited, and Makhija Construction & Engg. (P) Ltd. v. Indore Development Authority. It highlighted the distinction between the binding law of precedents under Article 141 of the Constitution and the doctrines of merger and res judicata.
The doctrine of merger signifies the absorption of a decree or order passed by an inferior court, tribunal, or authority into the order issued by a superior forum.
The Court clarified that the doctrine of merger is not universally applicable and depends on factors like jurisdiction exercised by the superior court and the subject matter of challenge.
The principle of res judicata, on the other hand, binds parties to proceedings to ensure an end to litigation. It applies when the lis (legal dispute) was inter-parties and has achieved finality on the issues involved.
The Court reiterated that an order dismissing an appeal without reasons cannot be treated as a precedent and applied to other cases.
The law of binding precedents, as per Article 141 of the Constitution, has a broader significance as it establishes legal principles emanating from judgments that are treated as binding precedents.