Section 24: General power of transfer and withdrawal

 

Code of Civil Procedure Section 23. To what Court application lies.

 

24. General power of transfer and withdrawal.—(1) On the application of any of the parties and after notice to the parties and after hearing such of them as desired to be heard, or of its own motion without such notice, the High Court or the District Court may at any stage—

(a) transfer any suit, appeal or other proceeding pending before it for trial or disposal to any Court subordinate to it and competent to try or dispose of the same, or

(b) withdraw any suit, appeal or other proceeding pending in any Court subordinate to it, and—

(i) try or dispose of the same; or

(ii) transfer the same for trial or disposal to any Court subordinate to it and competent to try or dispose of the same; or

(iii) retransfer the same for trial or disposal to the Court from which it was withdrawn.

(2) Where any suit or proceeding has been transferred or withdrawn under sub-section (1), the Court which ¹[is thereafter to try or dispose of such suit or proceeding] may, subject to any special directions in the case of an order of transfer, either retry it or proceed from the point at which it was transferred or withdrawn.

²[(3) For the purposes of this section,—

(a) Courts of Additional and Assistant Judges shall be deemed to be subordinate to the District Court;

(b) “proceeding” includes a proceeding for the execution of a decree or order.]

(4) The Court trying any suit transferred or withdrawn under this section from a Court of Small Causes shall, for the purposes of such suit, be deemed to be a Court of Small Causes.

³[(5) A suit or proceeding may be transferred under this section from a Court which has no jurisdiction to try it.]

Note 1: Subs. by Act 104 of 1976, s. 10, for “thereafter tries such suit” (w.e.f. 1-2-1977).

Note 2: Subs. by s. 10, ibid., for sub-section (3) (w.e.f. 1-2-1977).

Note 3: Ins. by s. 10, ibid, (w.e.f. 1-2-1977).

 

Part in Red is original provisions from CPC reproduced here for reference.

Code of Civil Procedure Section 25. Power of Supreme Court to transfer suits, etc.

Simplified Explanation:

Section 24 provides for power for transfer of a case from one court to another. It provides for transfer of suit, appeal or other proceedings. Other proceedings include the execution proceedings.

Judgments:

Transfer of the proceedings by the High Court before itself on the ground that a party is abusing the process of the Court or otherwise resorting to the process that other party may not succeed, stands fully fortified by the judgment of the Hon’ble Supreme Court in Abdul Rahman V. Prasony Bai & Anr., AIR 2003 SC 718.

In Nahar Industrial Enterprises Ltd. v. Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation, (2009) 8 SCC 646, the apex court held: “Only civil suits are subject matter of inter State transfer from one civil court to another civil court. Sub-section (5) of section 24 of CPC provides that a suit or proceeding may be transferred from a Court which has no jurisdiction to try it. The power to transfer one case from one court to another or from one tribunal to another is to be exercised if exceptional situation arises and not otherwise. Rules of procedures are intended to provide justice and not to defeat it.”

Reference: 

1) http://www.nja.nic.in/16%20CPC.pdf

Please share and follow this blog for more such law related articles.