Allahabad High Court
MOHD. ASGARversusSTATE OF U.P. AND 5 ORS.
- Decided
- Bench
- MANJU RANI CHAUHAN
Holding
A writ petition may be dismissed as infructuous when the petitioner does not appear and fails to show that a cause of action continues to exist.
Summary
The petitioner filed a writ petition in 2016 before the Allahabad High Court, which remained pending for several years. The court issued a notice directing that old cases up to 2022 be heard and that non‑appearance could lead to dismissal as infructuous. Neither the petitioner’s counsel appeared nor was the case marked to show that a cause of action still existed. Relying on the notice and the absence of any indication that the cause of action survived, the court held that the petition had become infructuous. Consequently, the writ petition was dismissed, though the petitioner was permitted to file a recall or restoration application if a cause of action still subsists.
Issues considered
- What is the appropriate disposition of a writ petition when the petitioner fails to appear and does not indicate that a cause of action survives?
Subjects
- writ petition
- infructuous
- non‑appearance
- court procedure
- cause of action
Judgment
HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT ALLAHABAD
WRIT - A No. - 50340 of 2016
Mohd. Asgar
.....Petitioner(s)
Versus
State Of U.P. And 5 Ors.
.....Respondent(s)
Counsel for Petitioner(s) : Indrajeet Kumar, Narendra Kumar,
Suved Kumar Sharma
Counsel for Respondent(s) : C.S.C., Mohd. Farooq, Siddharth
Srivastava, Vikram Bahadur Singh
Court No. - 52
HON'BLE MRS. MANJU RANI CHAUHAN, J.
Case is called out. None appears for the parties.
The case is listed in the category of oldest pending cases in the cause list, for
priority hearing.
A notice has been placed on the notice board specifically, mentioning that
"old cases up to the year 2022 shall be taken up in the first round itself. In
case of non-appearance, matter shall be dismissed as infructuous or
otherwise, and in the cases, where the cause of action still survives, the
concerned advocates are expected to mark them accordingly in the cause list.
Failure to do so, may result in its dismissal as infructuous" but, neither the
counsel for the petitioner has appeared nor has the case been marked to
indicate that the cause of action still survives.
Record shows that the matter is pending since the year 2016. It appears that
either the petitioner has lost interest in pursuing the matter or it has become
infructuous.
Accordingly, the writ petition is dismissed as infructuous.
Needless to say that the petitioner shall be at liberty to file recall/restoration
application in case any cause of action still survives.
March 18, 2026
Vinod.
(Mrs. Manju Rani Chauhan, J.)
Digitally signed by :-
VINOD KUMAR JAISWAL
High Court of Judicature at Allahabad
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