Friendly loan without commercial nexus falls outside commercial court jurisdiction under the Commercial Courts Act.

A solitary friendly loan between individuals, even if interest-bearing, lacks the commercial flavour required for a dispute under the Commercial Courts Act, 2015. The Bombay HC treated the nature of the transaction as determinative and held that a loan without a mercantile or business nexus does not fall within Section 2(c), which is confined to ordinary transactions of merchants, bankers, financiers and traders. On that basis, the plaint was held not to disclose a commercial dispute, and the refusal to return it was unsustainable; the matter was to be presented before the appropriate civil court.

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Issues: Whether a suit for recovery of a solitary friendly loan, without a commercial nexus, falls within the definition of a commercial dispute under the Commercial Courts Act, 2015, and whether the plaint was liable to be returned for presentation before the appropriate court.

Analysis: The statutory scheme of the Commercial Courts Act, 2015 is intended for speedy disposal of genuine commercial disputes and must be construed strictly. Disputes covered by Section 2(c) are those arising from ordinary transactions of merchants, bankers, financiers and traders, and the transaction must bear a commercial flavour. A mere hand loan or friendly loan, even if interest-bearing, does not by itself become an ordinary commercial transaction of a financier or banker. The nature of the transaction, and not the label used, is determinative; a friendly loan between individuals lacking a mercantile or business character falls outside the commercial court jurisdiction.

Conclusion: The plaint did not disclose a commercial dispute and the order refusing to return the plaint was unsustainable. The petitioner succeeded and the plaint was directed to be presented before the appropriate court.

Final Conclusion: The dispute was held to be outside the commercial court framework, and the matter was remitted to be pursued before the proper civil forum.

Ratio Decidendi: A solitary friendly loan transaction, without a commercial nexus or mercantile character, is not a commercial dispute within Section 2(c) of the Commercial Courts Act, 2015, and the plaint must be returned to the appropriate court.

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