Allahabad High Court can fix a time limit for an executing court under Article 227

28 October 2026

The Allahabad High Court has held that its supervisory power under Article 227 of the Constitution can be used to direct an executing court to dispose of an objection within a fixed period, without touching the merits of that objection. Justice Dr. Yogendra Kumar Srivastava was hearing Smt. Nirmala Devi against Punjab National Bank and others. The objection in question was one under Order XXI Rule 97 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908, the rule under which a person resisting delivery of possession to a decree holder raises a claim. The Court said the power exists so that execution proceedings are not left pending for an unduly long time, and that fixing a time limit does not take away the executing court's task of settling the disputed questions. The objector keeps the full chance to argue the objection, and nothing is settled in advance. The Additional District Judge at Meerut was asked to dispose of the objection preferably within three months of receiving a certified copy of the order. The Court also held that the earlier rejection of an impleadment application does not by itself settle whether res judicata applies.