To what Court application lies
Full Text
(1) Where the several Courts having jurisdiction are subordinate to the same Appellate Court, an application under section 22 shall be made to the Appellate Court.
(2) Where such Courts are subordinate to different Appellate Courts but to the same High Court, the application shall be made to the said High Court.
(3) Where such Courts are subordinate to different High Courts, the application shall be made to the High Court within the local limits of whose jurisdiction the Court in which the suit is brought is situate.
Plain English Summary
Section 23 determines the competent forum for filing a transfer application under Section 22: to the common Appellate Court if subordinate to the same appellate forum, to the High Court if subordinate to different appellate courts in the same State, or to the High Court within whose jurisdiction the suit is presently pending if subordinate to different High Courts.
Key Legal Elements
- Same Appellate Forum (Sec 23(1)): If courts having concurrent jurisdiction are subordinate to the same District Court, the transfer application lies to that District Court.
- Different District Courts in Same State (Sec 23(2)): If courts are subordinate to different District Courts under the same High Court, the application lies to the High Court.
- Courts Under Different High Courts (Sec 23(3)): Application lies to the High Court within whose local jurisdiction the suit is currently pending.
- Inter-State Transfers: Section 23(3) operates without prejudice to the Supreme Court's overriding inter-state transfer jurisdiction under Section 25.
Practical Note
Strategic forum selection and interplay with Section 25: Under Section 23(3), if a suit is instituted in Delhi and transfer is sought to a court in Mumbai, the application must be moved before the Delhi High Court (the court where the suit is brought). However, because a High Court lacks jurisdiction to transmit a case record to a court subordinate to another High Court, an inter-state transfer is best effected by moving a Transfer Petition (Civil) directly before the Supreme Court under Section 25.
हिंदी पाठ
(1) जहां कि अधिकारिता रखने वाले कई न्यायालय एक ही अपील न्यायालय के अधीनस्थ हैं वहां धारा 22 के अधीन आवेदन अपील न्यायालय को किया जाएगा।
(2) जहां कि ऐसे न्यायालय विभिन्न अपील न्यायालयों के किन्तु एक ही उच्च न्यायालय के अधीनस्थ हैं वहां आवेदन उक्त उच्च न्यायालय को किया जाएगा।
(3) जहां कि ऐसे न्यायालय विभिन्न उच्च न्यायालयों के अधीनस्थ हैं वहां आवेदन उस उच्च न्यायालय को किया जाएगा जिसकी अधिकारिता की स्थानीय सीमाओं के भीतर वह न्यायालय स्थित है जिसमें वाद लाया गया है।