Mere ‘appreciation of facts, documentary evidence and contents of document’0 cannot be equated with ‘raising substantial question of law’

Filing of a second appeal, or for that matter, any appeal is not a matter of right. The right of appeal is conferred by statute. A second appeal only lies on a substantial question of law. If the statute confers a limited right of appeal, the Court cannot expand the scope of the appeal. It is not open to the appellant to re-agitate facts or to call upon the Court to re-analyze or re-appreciate evidence in a Second Appeal.

Section 100 of the Civil Procedure Code restricts the right of the second appeal to only those cases where a substantial question of law is involved. The existence of a “substantial question of law” is the sine qua non for exercise of appellate jurisdiction by Civil Courts.

For being “substantial”, a question of law must be debatable, not previously settled by the law of the land or any binding precedent, and must have a material bearing on the decision of the case and/or the rights of parties before it, if answered either way. For being a question of law “involved in the case”, there must be first, a foundation for it laid in the pleadings, and the question should emerge from the sustainable findings of fact, arrived at by Courts of facts, and it must be necessary to decide that question of law for a just and proper decision of the case.

Where no such question of law, nor even a mixed question of law and fact was urged before the Trial Court or First Appellate Court, as in this case, a second appeal cannot be entertained.

Whether a question of law is a substantial one and whether such a question is involved in the case or not, would depend on the facts and circumstances of each case. The paramount overall consideration is the need for striking a judicious balance between the indispensable obligation to do justice at all stages and the impelling necessity of avoiding prolongation in the life of any lis.

A condition precedent for entertaining and deciding a Second Appeal being the existence of a substantial question of law, whenever a question is framed by the High Court, the High Court will have to show that the question is one of law and not just a question of facts, it also has to show that the question is a substantial question of law

Thus mere appreciation of facts, documentary evidence or meaning of entries and contents of the document cannot be held to be raising a substantial question of law.

Appearing Counsel/s : Mr M.M.Dar, Mr M.A.Qayoom