In Brief
The Supreme Court clarified that when a Lok Adalat awards a settlement between parties, any challenge to that award (even on grounds of fraud or misrepresentation) must be made exclusively through a writ petition under Article 226 or 227 before the High Court, not by filing a civil suit. The Court held that the phrase 'barred by any law' in Order 7 Rule 11(d) of the Code of Civil Procedure includes Supreme Court precedents, which are binding on all courts under Article 141. Therefore, a civil suit attempting to challenge such an award is barred and the plaint must be rejected. The writ court may then examine any petition on its merits according to law without influence from the Court's maintainability analysis.
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