Civil Revision No.

3740 of 2009

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IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA AT CHANDIGARH Civil Revision No.3740 of 2009 Date of Order: 23.07.2009 Rekha Jhanji Brar Versus Sohan Lal and others CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE RAJIVE BHALLA Present: Mr. Sumet Mahajan, Senior Advocate with Mr. Sham Lal Bhalla, Advocate for the appellant RAJIVE BHALLA, J (Oral). The petitioner challenges an order dated 19.05.2009, passed by the District Judge, Ludhiana, dismissing her application for transfer of the case titled as Sohan Lal Jhanji V. Rekha Jhanji and others, pending before the Civil Judge (Junior Division), Jagraon to a court of competent jurisdiction at Ludhiana. The petitioner is defending a suit filed at Jagraon. Alleging that plaintiff no.2 and his sons are practising Advocates at Jagraon, the ..Respondents ....Petitioner

petitioner filed Transfer Application No.204 of 2008 titled Rekha Jhanji v. Sohan Lal and others before this Court praying that the suit be transferred from Jagraon to Chandigarh. The transfer application was dismissed by holding that in the absence of any specific allegation against the lawyers and the Presiding Officer the petitioner could not be permitted to choose her forum. Liberty, however, was granted to file an application before the District Judge, Ludhiana for transferring the civil suit from Jagraon to Ludhiana. The petitioner filed an application for transfer of the suit from Jagraon to Ludhiana, which has been dismissed by the District Judge, Ludhiana.

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I have heard counsel for the petitioner and do not find any reason to accept the prayer made in the revision petition. The order passed by the Ld. District Judge, Ludhiana, does not suffer from any error of jurisdiction. It would be necessary to mention here that the distance between Jagraon and Ludhiana is less than 30 Kms. and in view of the expansion of the city of Ludhiana, Jagraon is more of a suburb of Ludhiana. The petitioner is a resident of Chandigarh and, therefore, would not suffer any inconvenience whether she has to travel to Ludhiana or Jagraon. It would be necessary to mention here that the petitioner had filed a petition for transfer of another suit from Jagraon to Chandigarh on the ground that relatives of the respondents are advocates practising at Jagraon. The transfer petition was dismissed, vide order dated 21.10.2008. aforementioned order reads as follows:I find no reason to accept the prayer for transfer of the suit. The mere fact that the respondents are An extract from the

Advocates or their children are Advocates practising at Jagraon and Ludhiana are by themselves insufficient to transfer the case. In the absence of any substantial allegation of any overt act that may give rise to a reasonable apprehension that the applicant would be impaired in her defence at Jagraon or would be denied justice, the applicant's prayer based upon an

unfounded apprehension, cannot be accepted. While considering a prayer for transfer, a Court cannot arbitrarily transfer a case so as to suit the convenience of one party or the other. The applicant is an educated lady, who retired as a Professor from the Panjab University and is already defending Jagraon. another suit at

A suit filed in a Court of competent

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jurisdiction cannot be transferred on the mere whim or a party. In view of what has been stated herein above the prayer for transfer of the suit is declined and the present application is dismissed. At this stage, counsel for the applicant states that an alternative prayer for transfer of the suit to Ludhiana may be considered. Such a prayer would fall within the jurisdiction of the District Judge, Ludhiana and the applicant may, if so advised, file an application in accordance with law. The District Judge has considered the prayer for transfer in its entirety and having found no reason to transfer the case from Jagraon to Ludhiana dismissed the application. It would be necessary to emphasise that a suit filed before a court of competent jurisdiction cannot be transferred on the ground of mere inconvenience. The argument that the appellant's advocate has to travel from Ludhiana to Jagraon is irrelevant on account of the negligible distance between the two cities. The submission that the respondents are residents of Ludhiana and, therefore, the suit be transferred to Ludhiana cannot be a ground to transfer the suit to Ludhiana. As the impugned order does not suffer from any error of jurisdiction or of law, I find no reason to interfere. Dismissed.

July 23, 2009 nt

(RAJIVE BHALLA) JUDGE