R. Praveen Kumar vs M. Rajani Shakuntala
2021 Latest Caselaw 4149 Tel

     THE HON'BLE SRI JUSTICE A. VENKATESHWARA REDDY

               Tr. C.M.P.Nos.174, 175, 176 and 177 of 2019

COMMON ORDER:


1.      Transfer Civil Miscellaneous Petition No.174 of 2019 is filed by the

petitioner under Section 24 of the Civil Procedure Code seeking transfer of

the Appeal Suit in AS No.29 of 2017 pending on the file of the learned

I Additional Chief Judge, City Civil Court at Secunderabad, to this Court to

be heard along with CCCA No.248 of 2017.


2.      Tr.C.M.P.No.175 of 2019 is filed for transfer of AS No.30 of 2017

pending on the file of the learned I Additional Chief Judge, City Civil Court

at Secunderabad, to this Court, to be heard along with CCCA No.248 of

2017.


3.      Tr.C.M.P.No.176 of 2019 is filed for transfer of AS No.38 of 2017

pending on the file of the learned XII Additional Chief Judge, City Civil

Court at Secunderabad, to this Court to be heard along with CCCA No.248

of 2017.


4.      Tr.C.M.P.No.177 of 2019 is filed for transfer of AS No.31 of 2017

pending on the file of the learned I Additional Chief Judge, City Civil Court

at Secunderabad, to this Court to be heard along with CCCA No.248 of

2017.


5.      Initially, OS No.475 of 2011 was filed by M. Anurag, the respondent

herein against the defendant, the petitioner herein for recovery of suit claim

and the suit was decreed. Assailing the judgment and decree in OS No.475

of 2011, AS No.29 of 2017 is filed before the I Additional Chief Judge,

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& 177 of 2019

City Civil Court at Secunderabad. Now, through the Tr.C.M.P.No.174 of

2019, the defendant has requested to transfer the said AS to this Court to be

heard along with CCCA No.248 of 2017.

6. OS No.476 of 2011 was filed by the plaintiff, M/s. Padmaja

Enterprises against the defendant/petitioner herein, for recovery of suit

claim. The said suit was decreed. The defendant preferred Appeal Suit in

AS No.30 of 2017, which is pending on the file of the learned

I Additional Chief Judge, Chief Civil Court at Secunderabad.

7. OS No.206 of 2012 is filed by the plaintiff for recovery of suit claim

and that suit was decreed. Aggrieved by the said judgment and decree, the

first defendant/respondent herein has preferred an appeal, vide AS No.38 of

2017, which is pending before the learned XII Additional Chief Judge, City

Civil Court, Secunderabad.

8. OS No.477 of 2011 filed by the plaintiff against the defendant, who

is the petitioner herein for recovery of suit claim, was decreed and the

defendant has preferred Appeal Suit, vide AS No.31 of 2017, which is

pending on the file of the I Addition Chief Judge, City Civil Court at

Hyderabad.

9. Whereas, OS No.204 of 2012 filed by the plaintiff against the

defendant Nos.1 & 2 on the file of XIX Additional Senior Civil Judge, City

Civil Courts, Secunderabad was decreed and based on pecuniary

jurisdiction, the defendant No.1 has preferred an appeal before this Court,

vide CCCA No.248 of 2017. Similarly, OS No.205 of 2012 filed against

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the defendants was decreed and an appeal, vide CCCA No.251 of 2017 is

preferred before this Court based on pecuniary jurisdiction.

10. In all the transfer petitions, the claim of the petitioner/appellant

/defendant is that all the above suits were filed for recovery of money and

all the suits were decreed, vide separate judgements and decrees. The

mother of the respondent herein by name M. Rajani Shakuntala has

preferred two appeals before this Court, vide CCCA Nos.248 of 2017 and

CCCA No.251 of 2017 and one appeal in AS No.38 of 2017 before XII

Additional Chief Judge, City Civil Courts, Secunderabad, three other

appeals, vide AS Nos.29, 30 and 31 of 2017 are pending before the I

Additional Chief Judge, City Civil Court at Secunderabad and that all the

four appeals may be withdrawn from those Courts and transferred to this

Court and to be heard along with CCCA No.248 of 2017 pending on the file

of this Court.

11. Whereas, the respondent/plaintiff filed a detailed counter denying

the averments of the petition stating that there are no merits in the transfer

petitions and that in all the four suits, independent trial was conducted, the

parties are overlapping, only because of pecuniary jurisdiction, the appeals

were filed before the I Additional and XII Additional Chief Judge Courts,

City Civil Courts, Secunderabad, and before this Court. There is no need to

transfer the Appeal Suits pending on the file of City Civil Courts to this

Court. In the event of transfer, the respondent will lose an opportunity of

second appeal and further that the matters before the City Civil Courts are

ripen for hearing. In any event, if those matters are disposed of in AS

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& 177 of 2019

Nos.29, 30, 31 and 38 of 2017, they may be clubbed with the pending first

appeals, vide CCCA Nos.248 of 2017.

12. Section 24 of CPC confers general power to transfer and withdrawal

of the suits and proceedings by this Court and the District Courts. The

language of Section 24 is very wide and there are no restrictions in the way

of this Court exercising the said power. It can be exercised by the Court

either on the application of any of the party or on its own motion and at any

stage of the suit.

13. Here in the case on hand, though the parties either one and the same

or overlapping in some of suits in OS Nos.475, 476 and 477 of 2011 and

OS Nos.204, 205 and 206 of 2012 independent trial was conducted in these

suits, evidence was recorded separately and all those suits were decreed,

and the appeals were preferred, as stated above. During pendency of the

original suits, no such request was made either for transfer of all the matters

to one Court, or for recording common evidence. As per the judgments in

all the suits, it is clear that evidence was separately recorded, separate

documents are exhibited, though at a time some witnesses are examined.

At this stage, when the appeals are pending before various Courts in the

Unit of City Civil Courts, Hyderabad and before this Court, the petitioners

have come up with a request to withdraw those appeals and to hear along

with CCCA No.248 of 2017.

14. As rightly objected by the learned counsel for the respondent/

plaintiff, in the event of withdrawal of those appeals pending on the file of

the I Addl. Chief Judge, City Civil Court, Secunderabad or XII Addl. Chief

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Judge, City Civil Court, Secunderabad, the respondents/ defendants will

lose an opportunity of second appeal, since the first appeals are pending

before the I Addl. Chief Judge, City Civil Court, Secunderabad and XII

Addl. Chief Judge, City Civil Court, Secunderabad. Though the subject

matter may be common or connected with CCCA No.248 of 2017 and

CCCA No.251 of 2017, all these suits were not disposed of through a

common order, but individual judgments and decrees were passed in all the

suits and aggrieved by the same based on pecuniary jurisdiction four

appeals, AS Nos.29, 30, 31 and 38 of 2017, were filed before the I

Additional and XII Additional Chief Judge, City Civil Courts,

Secunderabad, and two appeals, vide CCCA No.248 of 2017 and 251 of

2017 were filed before this Court and therefore, I do not find any merit in

the request of the learned counsel for the petitioner.

15. Therefore in such circumstances, since all the four appeals were

directed against four individual judgments in separate suits, evidence was

recorded separately and because of pecuniary jurisdiction, CCCA No.248

of 2017 and CCCA No.251 of 2017 is filed before this Court and other

appeals AS Nos.29, 30, 31 and 38 of 2017 are filed before the Court of I

Additional Chief Judge, XII Additional Chief Judge, City Civil Courts and

no such effort was made during the pendency of those suits either for trying

together or clubbing of the suits together or for recording common evidence

and that as the appeals before the City Civil Courts are ripen for disposal,

I do not find any merit in the request of the petitioners/defendants for

transfer of AS Nos.29, 30, 31 and 38 of 2017 respectively on the file of the

I Addl. Chief Judge, City Civil Court, Secunderabad and XII Addl. Chief

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Judge, City Civil Court, Secunderabad to this Court to be heard with CCCA

No.248 of 2017.

16. In the result, the Transfer Civil Miscellaneous Petitions are hereby

dismissed. In the circumstances, there shall be no order as to costs.

Miscellaneous applications, if any pending, in these transfer petitions shall

stand closed.

_______________________________ A. VENKATESHWARA REDDY, J.

Date: 06.12.2021 Isn