Allahabad High Court Refuses To Entertain Samajwadi Party's Plea Against Eviction Of Pilibhit District Office

The Allahabad High Court today refused to entertain a writ petition moved by the Samajwadi Party (SP) challenging the decision of the Nagar Palika Parishad, Pilibhit, to evict the Party from its district office premises.

A bench of Justice Ashwini Mishra and Justice Jayant Banerji observed that since the petitioner/party had already approached the civil court in relation to the same subject matter, parallel proceedings in the HC could not be permitted.

"You have already gone to the civil court against the same document, can you be allowed to pursue parallel proceedings? … Though it has not been prayed explicitly, implicitly it is the same", Justice Mishra orally questioned the Counsel appearing for SP during the hearing.

To this, when the petitioner's counsel, Advocate Vinayak Mittal, argued that the respondents had already acted upon the order and placed a lock on the premises, Justice Mishra responded: "Whatever it may be... but the petition as it stands today is only for injunction".

The bench further clarified that if there was non-consideration of its plea before the lower court, the petitioner could move the HC invoking its jurisdiction under Article 227 of the Constitution. However, it added, a writ petition under Article 226 would not be maintainable once the civil remedy had been availed.

Thus, recording the petitioner's submission that it has approached the civil court for the grant of an appropriate injunction with respect to the property, the court was not inclined to interfere in the matter. Accordingly, the Court declined to exercise jurisdiction in respect of the case before it, and thus, the petition was consigned to the records.