Orissa High Court: Res Judicata Does Not Apply to Execution Proceedings Under Order 21 of CPC

The Orissa High Court has ruled that the principle of res judicata under Section 11 of the CPC does not apply to execution proceedings governed by Order XXI, which is an independent and self-contained code for executing decrees and orders.

The Court was hearing a revision petition under Section 115 CPC, challenging a Civil Judge (Senior Division), Sonepur order that dropped an execution case for not specifying the recovery amount and valuations of attached properties.

The Bench held that decree-holders should not be barred from execution for technical defects and must be allowed to rectify errors and file fresh applications if needed.

[Santosh Patra v State of Orissa & Ors]