Time Incorporated vs Lokesh Srivastava And Anr. on 3 January, 2005
26. I am in agreement with the aforesaid submission of learned counsel for the
plaintiff that damages in such cases must be awarded and a defendant, who
chooses to stay away from the proceedings of the Court, should not be
permitted to enjoy the benefits of evasion of court proceedings. Any view
to the contrary would result in a situation where a defendant who appears
in Court and submits its account books would be liable for damages, while
another defendant who, chooses to stay away from court proceedings
would escape the liability on account of failure of the availability of
account books. A party who chooses not to participate in court proceedings
and stays away must, thus, suffer the consequences of damages as stated
and set out by the plaintiffs. There is a larger public purpose involved to
discourage such parties from indulging in such acts of deception and, thus,
even if the same has a punitive element, it must be granted. R.C. Chopra, J.
has very succinctly set out in Time Incorporated's case (supra) that
punitive damages are founded on the philosophy of corrective justice.