High Courts have no power to transfer cases outside state: SC
The SC has ruled that High Courts have no power to transfer civil matters.
By PTI |
NEW DELHI: In a ruling which assumes significance for many couples involved in matrimonial disputes, the Supreme Court has ruled that High Courts have no power to transfer civil matters, including marital discord cases, to courts outside a state.
In other words, if in a matrimonial dispute the husband is residing in Madhya Pradesh and the wife in Maharashtra, then neither the High Court of Madhya Pradesh, much less the Bombay High Court, has the power to transfer the case of the couple from one state to another.
The power to transfer civil proceedings from one state to another in vested only in the Supreme Court and the High Courts have no such power, a two-judge bench of Justices C K Thakker and D K Jain has ruled.
The bench said that by this decision it is overruling all previous decisions of various High Courts in the country wherein the respective High Courts had assumed the power to transfer civil proceedings to other states.
The apex court passed the ruling while upholding the appeal of Durgesh, a resident of Ujjain, challenging the Madhya Pradesh High Court's order to transfer his matrimonial dispute case to a court in Nasik in Maharashtra on the plea of his wife Jayashree.
The wife had pleaded transfer of the case to Nasik in Madhya Pradesh on the ground that as a single woman she cannot travel 400 kms to Ujjain to fight the case filed by her.
The Madhya Pradesh High Court accepted her plea, applying Section 23 of the CrPC which authorises a High Court to transfer a case from one subordinate court to another court within its own jurisdiction.
The apex court said that it was wrong to presume that Section 23 of the Civil Procedure Code is a substantive provision which authorises High Courts to transfer civil cases outside a state as held by the High Court in various decisions so far.
According to the apex court under the amended (1977) provision of Section 25 of the it is only the Supreme Court which has the power and authority to transfer a case, proceedings or trial from one state to another state.
"Even if such power was with a High Court earlier, it stood withdrawn with effect from January 1, 1977 in view of Section 25 of the Code as amended by Code of Civil Procedure (Amendment) Act, 1976," the bench observed.
According to the apex court, Section 25 of the Civil Procedure Code is a 'complete Code' dealing with substantive as well as procedural law.
"Parliament thought it proper to amend Section 25 of the Code and accordingly, it was substituted by empowering this Court (Supreme Court) to order transfer from one High Court to another High Court or to one Civil Court in one state to another Civil Court in any other state," the bench said.
It said the order passed by the Madhya Pradesh High Court, deserves to be set aside and accordingly set aside the order passed in favour of the petitioner's estranged wife.
In other words, if in a matrimonial dispute the husband is residing in Madhya Pradesh and the wife in Maharashtra, then neither the High Court of Madhya Pradesh, much less the Bombay High Court, has the power to transfer the case of the couple from one state to another.
The power to transfer civil proceedings from one state to another in vested only in the Supreme Court and the High Courts have no such power, a two-judge bench of Justices C K Thakker and D K Jain has ruled.
The bench said that by this decision it is overruling all previous decisions of various High Courts in the country wherein the respective High Courts had assumed the power to transfer civil proceedings to other states.
The apex court passed the ruling while upholding the appeal of Durgesh, a resident of Ujjain, challenging the Madhya Pradesh High Court's order to transfer his matrimonial dispute case to a court in Nasik in Maharashtra on the plea of his wife Jayashree.
The wife had pleaded transfer of the case to Nasik in Madhya Pradesh on the ground that as a single woman she cannot travel 400 kms to Ujjain to fight the case filed by her.
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The Madhya Pradesh High Court accepted her plea, applying Section 23 of the CrPC which authorises a High Court to transfer a case from one subordinate court to another court within its own jurisdiction.
The apex court said that it was wrong to presume that Section 23 of the Civil Procedure Code is a substantive provision which authorises High Courts to transfer civil cases outside a state as held by the High Court in various decisions so far.
According to the apex court under the amended (1977) provision of Section 25 of the it is only the Supreme Court which has the power and authority to transfer a case, proceedings or trial from one state to another state.
"Even if such power was with a High Court earlier, it stood withdrawn with effect from January 1, 1977 in view of Section 25 of the Code as amended by Code of Civil Procedure (Amendment) Act, 1976," the bench observed.
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According to the apex court, Section 25 of the Civil Procedure Code is a 'complete Code' dealing with substantive as well as procedural law.
"Parliament thought it proper to amend Section 25 of the Code and accordingly, it was substituted by empowering this Court (Supreme Court) to order transfer from one High Court to another High Court or to one Civil Court in one state to another Civil Court in any other state," the bench said.
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It said the order passed by the Madhya Pradesh High Court, deserves to be set aside and accordingly set aside the order passed in favour of the petitioner's estranged wife.
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