Procedural amendment to interlocutory pleadings allowed without reopening the main hearing or permitting a de novo hearing.

Amendment of the prayer clause in a pending interlocutory application was treated as a procedural request because it added pleadings and parties without changing the nature of the proceedings or introducing a separate cause of action. The tribunal allowed the amendment on a conditional basis, but made clear that the main application would not be reopened and the matter would not proceed by way of a de novo hearing. Given the time-bound character of the proceedings, written submissions could still be filed, and the proposed amendment was treated as part of the main interlocutory application.

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Issues: Whether the applicant should be permitted to amend the prayer clause of the pending interlocutory application by adding parties and additional prayers.

Analysis: The amendment was treated as procedural, as it only sought incorporation of additional pleadings without altering the nature of the proceedings or creating a separate cause of action. The request was confined to the pending interlocutory application, and the hearing already undertaken on the main application was not to be reopened. The Court also noted the time-bound character of the matter and clarified that the allowance of amendment would not entitle the applicant to a de novo hearing, though written submissions could still be filed.

Conclusion: The amendment application was conditionally allowed, and the proposed amendment was deemed to have been carried out and heard with the main interlocutory application.

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