ORDER SHEET

IN THE HIGH COURT OF SINDH AT KARACHI

H.C.A. No.108 of 2022

___________________________________________________________________ Date Order with signature of Judge

___________________________________________________________________

FRESH CASE:

1. For order on CMA No.824/2022 (Urgent).

2. For order on office objection a/w reply as at ‘A’.

3. For order on CMA No.825/2022 (Exemption).

4. For hearing of main case.

5. For order on CMA No.826/2022 (Stay).

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25^th March 2022

Qazi Umair Ali, Advocate for Appellant.

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1. Urgency granted.

2. Learned counsel for the appellant undertakes to comply with office objections before next date of hearing.

3. Exemption granted subject to all just exceptions.

4&5. Through instant High Court Appeal, the appellant has impugned an order dated 16.03.2022 passed by the learned Single Judge of this Court in Suit No.1574 of 2021, whereby, according to learned counsel for the appellant, an interim order passed on 16.07.2021 on the application filed by the appellant under Order XXXIX Rules 1&2 CPC directing the parties to maintain status quo has been modified, in the absence of any application under Order XXXIX Rule 4 CPC of the respondents and without hearing the counsel for the appellant, while observing that the status quo order already in the field also restrains the Plaintiff from exhibiting the said cinematographic work/movie. According to the learned counsel for appellant, keeping in view the contents of the application filed by the appellant under Order XXXIX Rules 1&2 CPC and the interim order passed by the learned Single Judge on 16.07.2021, no such directions were issued by the learned Single Judge, nor such restraining order otherwise could have been passed against the plaintiff in the suit to plaintiff’s disadvantage when defendants had not even filed any application seeking modification or recalling of interim order. Learned counsel for the appellant further submits that the matter was fixed today as date by Court before the learned Single Judge, however, defendants/respondents Nos.1&2 while filing an urgent application obtained an order on 21.03.2022, whereby, date of hearing has been postdated from 25.03.2022 to 29.03.2022, on which date, counsel for the appellant will be out of station to attend cases before Lahore High Court fixed as date by Court. Per learned counsel, the order passed on the application filed by the appellant in his suit under Order XXXIX Rules 1&2 CPC has been modified to the disadvantage of the appellant, without providing any opportunity of being heard, therefore, requests that impugned order may be set aside and the learned Single Judge may be directed to pass appropriate order on the injunction application after hearing the parties in accordance with law.

From perusal of the impugned order, it appears that no final order has been passed on the injunction application filed by the appellant, whereas, it appears that the learned Single Judge at the verbal averment by learned counsel for respondent pressing for on orders on contempt application filed by the respondent has passed the impugned order, which according to appellant, amounts to recalling / modifying the interim order, as it has adversely affected the case of the appellant in the suit. It appears that in the absence of any application by the respondents under Order XXXIX Rule 4 CPC seeking recalling or modification of the status quo order, appellant has been restrained from exhibiting the cinematographic work/movie. We are of the view that any modification or clarification in the interim order passed on application under Order XXXIX Rules 1&2 CPC filed by the appellant in his suit could have been made after hearing the parties. Since the injunction application in the suit is still pending before the learned Single Judge to be decided on merits after hearing the parties, whereas, no final order has been passed, therefore, it will be appropriate to remand the instant matter back to the learned Single Judge, who may pass appropriate order on the injunction application, after hearing the parties on the next date of hearing, however, till then, the impugned order to the extent of “the status quo order already in the field also restrains the Plaintiff from exhibiting the said cinematographic work/movie” shall remain suspended.

Instant High Court Appeal stands disposed of alongwith listed applications in the above terms.

J U D G E