Whether party can seek permission to examine himself after examination of his witness?

Under Rule 3A of Order XVIII, it is ordinarily necessary for a party to examine himself first before he examines any other witness on his behalf. A discretion has been conferred on the Court to permit such party to appear as his own witness at a later stage. The words 'at a later stage' would have to be given the ordinary meaning to mean that there is no prohibition for a party to seek such permission even after other witnesses have examined on his behalf. Restricting the application of Rule 3A to situations only where prior permission of the Court is taken by a party for examining himself before other witnesses on his behalf have been examined would amount to reading such restriction in Rule 3A of the Code which has not been provided. It is ultimately for the Court to grant such permission in the facts of the case. There could be a situation as the present case where the plaintiff was unavailable when he was required to lead evidence and after his Power of Attorney holder was examined as his witness, the plaintiff was available for leading his evidence. The Court if it finds it necessary to permit such party to be examined after his other witnesses have been examined can always permit such examination subject to the rider that such examination would not be for the purposes of filling in any lacuna that is sought to be filled in by such subsequent examination. It does not appear from a plain reading of Rule 3A of Order XVIII that only if a party seeks prior permission before any other witness on his behalf has been examined that the Court can consider such request and that the hands of the Court would be tied if such request is made later on. The fact that the power to grant such permission at a later stage by exercising discretion and permitting a party to examine himself as a witness at a later stage is conferred on the Court would imply that such permission could be sought in a given case after other witnesses on his behalf have been examined. The discretion having been conferred on the Court, it goes without saying that such discretion would have to be exercised in a judicious manner in the light of the facts of the case and obviously to prevent any mischief or filling up of any lacuna on the part of such party by examining himself at a later stage. The Court is also empowered to restrict such evidence in a given case as the facts demand. It is therefore not possible to agree with the position that if no application is made under provisions of Order XVIII Rule 3A of the Code seeking permission by the party prior to other witnesses being examined by such party, the opportunity is lost forever. On the other hand, the trial Court in exercise of its discretion can regulate the manner in which as well as the extent to which such party can be permitted to appear as his own witness at a later stage.

IN THE HIGH COURT OF BOMBAY (NAGPUR BENCH)

Writ Petition No. 447/2019

Decided On: 08.04.2019

Care Hospitals, Ganga Care Hospitals Limited  Vs. Nilesh

Hon'ble Judges/Coram:

A.S. Chandurkar, J.

Citation: 2019(3) MHLJ 955

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