Imam v. Peter and Others – sllr 2009 volume 2 page 121

In Imam v. Peter and Others, the court addressed whether an ex parte decree could be set aside using inherent judicial power in the presence of procedural irregularities, notwithstanding the absence of explicit statutory authority or party consent. The dispute arose following a scheduling conflict between a court-ordered commission’s return date and the previously fixed trial date—a conflict created at the instance of the plaintiff. The ex parte judgment entered against the 1st defendant was vacated by invoking inherent power under Section 839 of the Civil Procedure Code to prevent abuse of process, while the ex parte decree against the 2nd defendant was restored. The court reaffirmed that inherent powers may be exercised to remedy procedural abuses where rigid adherence to statutory proce