SC: Suit Simpliciter For Injunction Without Claiming Declaration Of Title Not Maintainable If Plaintiff's Title Is Disputable

Background

• This particular case involved two suits that were disposed of together.
• The names of the cases are "T.V. Ramakrishna Reddy Vs. M. Mallappa" and "Kayalulla Parambath Moidu Haji Vs. Namboodiyil Vinodan".
• Plaintiff filed a lawsuit in the Trial Court seeking a perpetual injunction against the defendants. It prohibited them or anyone acting on their behalf from interfering with the plaintiff's peaceful possession and enjoyment of the suit property.
• A decree was granted, and the defendants appealed in the Karnataka High Court.
• The Karnataka High Court overturned the decree after the defendants filed an appeal, stating that the suit simpliciter for a permanent injunction without seeking a declaration of title was not tenable.
• The case was hence, before the Supreme Court of India.

Issue Raised

Whether the plaintiff's suit simpliciter for a permanent injunction without claiming declaration of title was maintainable in this case?

Court's Observation

• The Court noted that in "Anathula Sudhakar v. P. Buchi Reddy (2008)," it was held that where the plaintiff's title is not in dispute or clouded, a suit for injunction can be decided on the findings regarding the possession.
• Based on the evidence on file, the Court stated that the plaintiff does not have a clear title to the suit property.
• According to the bench, the question at hand required adjudication after the evidence has been presented and all questions of fact and law have been resolved.
• The Court also cited the decision in Jharkhand State Housing Board v. Didar Singh (2019) 17 SCC 692, which held that a suit for bare injunction is not maintainable when the defendant casts a cloud over the plaintiff's title.

Conclusion

• The Appeal was dismissed by the Supreme Court bench comprising of Justice L. Nageswara Rao and Justice B.R. Gavai.
• The Court stated that a suit simpliciter for a permanent injunction without claiming declaration of title could only be maintained if the plaintiff's title is not under dispute.
• It was observed that while deciding the issue in a suit for mere injunction, the Court must relegate the parties to a comprehensive suit for declaration of title if the matter involves complicated questions of fact and the law relating to the title.
• Similar observations were made by the same bench in dismissing an appeal (Kayalulla Parambath Moidu Haji Vs. Namboodiyil Vinodan) filed against a Kerala High Court judgment that raised the same legal issues.

Questions

• What do Perpetual Injunctions in a civil suit mean?
• What is the meaning of Declaration of title?

Do share your views in the comments section.