Sushil Kumar Sabharwal vs Gurpreet Singh And Ors

The Supreme Court held that proper service of summons under Order 5, Rules 17 and 18 of the C.P.C. requires that if a defendant refuses to accept service, the process server must affix a copy of the summons at a conspicuous place. The Court found that the process server's actions did not comply with the prescribed procedure, leading to the conclusion that the tenant was not properly served. Consequently, the ex-parte decree was set aside, allowing the tenant to contest the eviction proceedings.