Can the court refuse to grant a mandatory injunction for removing obstruction placed upon a public street if the plaintiff can use street despite the obstacle?

  The extent of the right of a member of the public to pass and repass over a public street came up for consideration before a Bench of the Andhra Pradesh High Court in M. Butchamma v. Venkateswararao. There, the prayer for mandatory injunction for the removal of obstruction placed upon a public street was rejected by the trial Court and the lower appellate Court, on the ground that notwithstanding obstruction placed by plaintiff the street was wide enough to afford passage to cattle and carts and the plaintiff had not established any special damage entitling her to the relief by way of mandatory injunction. On appeal, Chinnappa Reddy J (as he then was) has observ-2d as follows (Para 5):

"The defendant cannot be heard to say that the obstruction placed by him cannot be removed so long as he has left a passage of sufficient width to enable men, cattle and carts to go. As we have said, the right of the public to pass and repass extends over every inch of the street and the defendant cannot in any manner restrict the right and compel the plaintiff to confine herself to a part of the street of the choice of the defendant." {Para 17}

 IN THE HIGH COURT OF MADRAS

S.A. No. 190 of 2013 and M.P. No. 1 of 2013

Decided On: 25.03.2022

Arulmighu Palapattarai Mariamman Tirukoil  Vs.  Pappayee and Ors.

Hon'ble Judges/Coram:

N. Anand Venkatesh, J.

Citation: MANU/TN/2918/2022.

Read full Judgment here: Click here

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