M/S.Orissa Stevedores LTD.,Cuttack vs. Union Of INDIA

Facts

The petitioner, M/s. Orissa Stevedores Ltd., filed multiple writ petitions (W.P.(C) Nos. 15862, 15864, 15866, and 15868 of 2022) before the High Court of Orissa at Cuttack. The petitions were filed against the Union of India and others, who are the opposite parties. The judgment itself is an order correcting a typographical error in a previous order dated 12.07.2022. The error involved the year of the main case and connected cases being incorrectly typed as "2020" instead of "2022". The operative part of this order is to direct that all references to "2020" in the order dated 12.07.2022 should be read as "2022". No specific tax period, amount in dispute, or the authority that passed the order under challenge is detailed in this specific correction order.

Held

The Court held that the typographical error in the year of the writ petitions, as recorded in the order dated 12.07.2022, should be corrected. The Court found that the year was inadvertently typed as "2020" instead of the correct year "2022". Consequently, the Court directed that wherever the year "2020" appears in the order dated 12.07.2022, in connection with W.P.(C) Nos. 15862, 15864, 15866 and 15868, it shall be read and understood as "2022". The reasoning is based on ensuring the accuracy and integrity of the court's record. The ratio decidendi is that clerical and typographical errors in court orders should be rectified to reflect the true intent and factual accuracy of the proceedings. The operative direction is the correction of the specific typographical error.

Key Issues

The primary issue addressed by this specific order is a procedural correction of a typographical error. The court had to decide whether to correct the year mentioned in a previous order. The petitioner, through their counsel, implicitly sought this correction to ensure the accuracy of the court record. The opposite parties (Union of India & Others) did not record any specific arguments in this correction order, suggesting their acquiescence or lack of opposition to the proposed correction. The issue is framed as: 1. Whether the year "2020" appearing in the order dated 12.07.2022, in relation to W.P.(C) Nos. 15862, 15864, 15866 and 15868, should be corrected to "2022" to accurately reflect the filing year of the writ petitions.