JUDGMENT
A.H. Joshi, J.
1. This Court issued a notice of final disposal on 19th December, 2006 to the respondent sole who failed to appear in spite of service. Petition is, therefore, taken up for final disposal.
2. Heard.
3. By the impugned order, the petitioners’ application for permission to file a Written Statement was rejected.
4. The petitioner No. 1 is an illiterate lady and a Sweeper by occupation.
5. The application for permission to file a Written Statement is not properly worded, and lacks the pleadings explaining reasons or cause of failure to file the Written Statement in due time. This lapse is, however, liable to be viewed as a fault attributable to mofussil and unskilful drafting.
6. It would be solely depending on the lawyer representing a party to explore and aver facts essential to making out a case, particularly when the litigants are rustic. Lack of proficiency by a lawyer engaged or who accepts the brief has, in fact, denied to such litigant due and fair legal aid.
7. This Court will have to give a peaceful consideration and thought as to whether the doctrine of ‘Justice to Downtrodden’ has some application even in the matters of disputes between two individual litigants, parties to civil disputes, and a party is deprived even of a basic and elementary legal aid and advice. The case like one at hand where the plaintiff, who had contested the application for permission to file a Written Statement, has failed to appear before this Court spite of issue of a notice of final disposal for over a period of ten months, leads this Court to reach to no other conclusion that to strike the balance of justice, it would be in the interest of justice to allow the application and permit the defendants to file their Written Statement on certain conditions. The procedural law can never be oblivious to hard realities of life and basic need of commitment of doing justice according to law. Principles of natural justice and the warrant of fair justice cannot be ignored. Permission to file a Written Statement can, therefore, be granted, however, it shall be on payment of cost of Rs. 500-00 (rupees five hundred only) by the petitioners to the plaintiff, within one month from the date of appearance before the trial Court.
9. An the result, petitioners’ application for a leave to file a Written Statement (Annexure-1) is allowed, on the condition that the petitioners pay or deposit in trial Court cost to the plaintiff in a sum of Rs. 500-00 (rupees five hundred only) within one month from the date of appearance. Parties shall appear before the trial Court on 17th December, 2007. Rule is thus, made absolute as above with a direction that parties shall bear own costs.