TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2006 (2) TMI 610
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....sued six cheques of the following description in favour of the appellant: Sl. No. Cheque No. Dated Amount 1 455997 10.06.2004 Rs. 5,33,795 2. 455998 10.07.2004 Rs. 5,33,795 3. 455999 10.08.2004 Rs. 5,33,795 4. 455993 10.06.2004 Rs. 6,49,085 5. 455994 10.07.2004 Rs. 6,49,085 6. 455995 10.08.2004 Rs. 6,49,085 Total: Rs. 35,48,640 3. The aforementioned cheques were deposited with "Mayurakhi Gramin Bank" Suri branch but they were returned by the Banker stating "full cover not received". A demand notice was sent by the appellant demanding payment of the said cheque to the respondent in September, 2004. Out of the aforementioned sum of Rs. 35,48,640/- a sum of Rs. 5,33,795/- was paid by respondent No. 4 on or about 15.9.2004. The appellant alleged that a sum of Rs. 30,14,845/- is still due and owing to him from the respondents. The respondents admit the claim of the appellant. They are said to have assured him that the rest of the amount shall be paid, but the same has not been done. 4. The appellant on the aforementioned allegations filed a complaint petition in the court ....
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.... along with another had entered into an agreement with the 1st petitioner company in that behalf, pursuant to which the supply was made. The 1st petitioner company gave good business to the 1st respondent, paying him for than Rs. 3 crores in the transaction. However, towards the end of the transactions, due to the aforesaid financial imbroglio in which the 1st petitioner company was placed in, an outstanding amount of about 35 lakhs remained payable to the 1st respondent herein. There is no question of the 1st petitioner company running away from its responsibility of paying the amount due but it needed some time to augment its resources in the context of the aforementioned financial entanglement it found itself in." [Emphasis supplied] 12. It was accepted that for securing the payment for supply of stone chips post-dated cheques used to be given. The reason for bouncing of the said cheques is said to be that all of them were presented without prior information to the Company. The respondents further averred in the writ petition that the National Highway Authority had not paid them a sum of Rs. 5.5 crores. However, the statements made in the complaint petition to ....
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....in the High Court of Bombay for specific performance of the said agreement. Two shareholders of CEL took over management and control of the company as Directors and they formed another company named JBHL at Shilong in the State of Meghalaya. Later the said suit was withdrawn upon the appellant's returning the amount paid by CEL which was earlier forfeited by the appellant. Pursuant to the said agreement JBHL made payments for the purchase of shares of IFPL. But the appellant therein contended that as JBHL committed default in making the balance payment and thereby committed breach of the agreement, the said agreement stood terminated and the earnest money stood forfeited as stipulated in the agreement. In the aforementioned situation a complaint was filed by the JBHL against the appellant at Shillong. The maintainability of the said complaint came to be questioned by Majithia by filing a writ petition before the Bombay High Court which was dismissed. Writ jurisdiction under Article 226 of the Constitution was invoked on the ground that the entire transaction on which the complaint was based had taken place at Mumbai and not at any other place outside the said town, much less at....
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....id that no part of the cause of action for filing the writ petition arose within the territorial jurisdiction of the Bombay High Court." 18. In Augustine (supra) a learned Single Judge of the Kerala High Court again on arriving at a finding of fact obtaining therein was of the opinion that the cause of action, therefore, arose within the jurisdiction of the Kerala High Court. It was, however, rightly held: "So far as the question of territorial jurisdiction with reference to a criminal offence is concerned, the main factor to be considered is the place where the alleged offence was committed." 19. Cause of action within the meaning of clause (2) of Article 226 shall have the same meaning as is ordinarily understood. The expression 'Cause of action' has a definite connotation. It means a bundle of facts which would be required to be proved. 20. In State of Rajasthan & Ors. vs. M/s Swaika Properties & Anr. [(1985) 3 SCC 217] this Court observed that service of notice was not an integral part of 'cause of action' within the meaning of Article 226 (2) of the Constitution of India. 21. In Aligarh Muslim University & Anr. vs. Vinay Engineering Enterpr....
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....ing would constitute cause of action, upon noticing the definition thereof as stated in Mulla's Code of Civil Procedure, 15th Edn., Vol. 1 at page 251 and a decision of the Court of Appeal in Paragon Finance v. D.B. Thakerar & Co. [(1999) 1 All ER 400], opined : "The fact that a person who was dismissed from service while he was in service outside the State would have to suffer the consequence of that dismissal when he is in his native place by being rendered jobless, is not a fact which constitutes the bundle of facts giving rise to a cause of action in his favour to challenge his dismissal. That right accrued to him earlier when he was dismissed from service outside the State and he lost his employment. Similarly, when an appeal is filed by him to an appellate authority who is outside the jurisdiction of this High Court and that appeal is dismissed by the appellate authority, the merger in the decision of the Appellate Authority takes place when the appeal is dismissed and not when the appellant receives the order. What a writ petitioner need plead as a part of his cause of action is the fact that his appeal was dismissed wholly or in part and not the fact that the o....
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....ainst a Judicial Officer. [See Naresh Shridhar Mirajkar & Ors. vs. State of Maharashtra & Anr. [AIR 1967 SC 1 : (1966) 3 SCR 744]. However, we are not oblivious of a decision of this Court in Surya Dev Rai vs. Ram Chander Rai & Ors. [(2003) 6 SCC 675] wherein this court upon noticing Naresh Shridhar Mirajkar (supra) and also relying on a Constitution Bench of this Court in Rupa Ashok Hurra vs. Ashok Hurra [(2002) 4 SCC 388] opined that a Judicial Court would also be subject to exercise of writ jurisdiction of the High Court. The said decision has again been followed in Ranjeet Singh vs. Ravi Prakash [(2004) 3 SCC 692]. It is, however, not necessary to dilate on the matter any further. The jurisdiction of the High Court under Section 482 of Code of Criminal Procedure was noticed recently by this Court in State of U.P. & Ors. vs. Surendra Kumar [(2005) 9 SCC 161] holding that even in terms thereof, the court cannot pass an order beyond the scope of the application thereof. In Surya Dev Rai (supra), we may however, notice that this Court categorically stated that the High Court in issuing a writ of certiorari exercises a very limited jurisdiction. It also made a distinction between ex....
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....to the fact that the order of the appellate authority is also required to be set aside and as the order of the original authority merges with that of the appellate authority. Lt. Col. Khajoor Singh v. Union of India whereupon the learned counsel appearing on behalf of the appellant placed strong reliance was rendered at a point of time when clause (2) of Article 226 had not been inserted. In that case the Court held that the jurisdiction of the High Court under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, properly construed, depends not on the residence or location of the person affected by the order but of the person or authority passing the order and the place where the order has effect. In the latter sense, namely, the office of the authority which is to implement the order would attract the territorial jurisdiction of the Court was considered having regard to Section 20(c) of the Code of Civil Procedure as Article 226 of the Constitution thence stood, stating: (AIR p.540, para 16) "The concept of cause of action cannot in our opinion be introduced in Article 226, for by doing so we shall be doing away with the express provision contained therein which requires that the....
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.... non conveniens also. [See Mayar (H.K) Ltd.& Ors. vs. Owners & Parties Vessel M.V. Fortune Express & Ors. - 2006 (2) SCALE 30] 30. In terms of Section 177 of the Code of Criminal Procedure every offence shall ordinarily be inquired into and tried by a court within whose local jurisdiction it was committed. Section 178 provides for place of inquiry or trial in the following terms: "(a) When it is uncertain in which of several local areas an offence was committed, or (b) where an offence is committed partly in one local area and partly in another, or (c) where an offence is a continuing one, and continues to be committed in more local areas than one, or (d) where it consists of several acts done in different local areas." 31. A bare perusal of the complaint petition would clearly go to show that according to the complainant the entire cause of action arose within the jurisdiction of the district courts of Birbhum and in that view of the matter it is that court which will have jurisdiction to take congnizance of the offence. In fact the jurisdiction of the court of CJM, Suri, Birbhum is not in question. It is not contended that the complainant....
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....n. Section 181(1) is in respect of the offences where the offenders are not normally located at a fixed place and that explains the departure. Section 183 deals with offences committed during journey or voyage. Section 186 deals with situation where two or more courts take cognizance of the same offence and in case of doubt as to which one of the courts has jurisdiction to proceed further, the High Court decides the matter. Section 187 deals with a situation where a person within the local jurisdiction of a Magistrate has committed an offence outside such jurisdiction. The Magistrate can compel such a person to appear before him and then send him to the Magistrate which has jurisdiction to inquire into or try such offence. 9. Under the aforesaid circumstances, the expression abovenoted in Section 188 is to be construed. The same expression was also there in the old Code. From the scheme of Chapter XIII of the Code, it is clear that neither the place of business nor place of residence of the petitioner and for that matter of even the complainant is of any relevance. The relevant factor is the place of commission of offence. By legal fiction, Section 188 which deals with off....