Summary: The Bombay High Court dismissed a request by Jawahar Saw Mills Pvt. Ltd. to submit a late written statement in a business lawsuit. The court decided that the company had plenty of time but didn't use it, and now has to deal with the consequences.
In this legal battle, Jawahar Saw Mills Pvt. Ltd., located in Mumbai, was against M/s. Ganesh Saw Mill from Latur. The case was about a recovery lawsuit filed by Ganesh Saw Mill for an unspecified amount.
The Commercial Court stressed that under the Commercial Courts Act, 2015, a written statement must be submitted within 120 days. Jawahar Saw Mills missed this deadline by a lot.
"The right to submit a written statement is lost if not done within 120 days," the court said.
Jawahar Saw Mills argued that since the case was moved from a Civil Court, the 120-day rule shouldn't count. They claimed the Commercial Court should have set a new deadline.
Ganesh Saw Mill's lawyer insisted that the 120-day rule was clear and had to be followed, mentioning a Supreme Court decision to back up their point.
Judge Rohit W. Joshi decided that the 120-day rule did apply and rejected the request to submit a late written statement. He noted that the company had shown a lack of care and seriousness in the matter.
The court's decision underscores the importance of following deadlines, especially in business disputes. Jawahar Saw Mills' failure to act quickly resulted in a major setback in their legal fight.
