M/s Chithra Woods Manors Welfare Association v. Shaji Augustine

April 24, 2025

2025 INSC 567 : https://lawyerslibrary.in/books/mpdp/
Supreme Court of India
Coram: Abhay S. Oka, Augustine George Masih, JJ.
Date of Judgment: April 24, 2025
Contempt Petition (Civil) No. 712 of 2023 in SLP (Civil) No. 17433 of 2021

Contempt of Court – Civil Contempt – Wilful Disobedience of Court Order – Non-Payment of Arrears – Misuse of Judicial Process.

The petitioner, M/s Chithra Woods Manors Welfare Association, filed a contempt petition alleging non-compliance by the respondent, Shaji Augustine, with the Supreme Court’s order dated 07.11.2022, directing payment of arrears of use and occupation charges at INR 12 lakhs per month from 20.09.2021 to 31.11.2022 in six monthly instalments starting 31.12.2022. The respondent, who had occupied the petitioner’s property under a 2014 agreement, defaulted on payments, leading to arbitration, mediation, and execution proceedings. Despite court orders, including a settlement agreement reducing the monthly fee to INR 8 lakhs, the respondent failed to pay, continued to occupy the property, and challenged orders across forums. The Supreme Court found the respondent’s non-compliance deliberate and mala fide, aimed at retaining the property’s benefits without fulfilling financial obligations. The respondent’s conduct, including misleading the court and exploiting judicial processes, constituted civil contempt under Section 2(b) of the Contempt of Courts Act, 1971.

Held: The respondent was guilty of civil contempt for wilful disobedience of the court’s order. Punishment of three months’ simple imprisonment and a fine of INR 20,000 (with an additional one month’s imprisonment in default) was imposed. The respondent was granted 30 days to comply with the 07.11.2022 order to purge the contempt, failing which the punishment would take effect. The court emphasized the necessity of punishing contempt to uphold judicial authority and public confidence in the judicial system.

Cases Referred:

Hira Lal Dixit v. State of Uttar Pradesh, (1954) 2 SCC 325
Bank of India v. Vijay Transport, (2000) 8 SCC 512
Sitaram Enterprises v. Prithviraj Vardichand Jain, 2024 SCC OnLine SC 2493

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