Transfer Petition Supreme Court Recent trend
These days Hon’ble Supreme court is not lenient in allowing transfer petition in favor of wife and is mostly dismissing these kind of petition and citing Krishna Veni Nagam vs Harish Nigam
In the aforesaid judgement the supreme court relying on Para-17 and 18 as mentioned below.
17. We are thus of the view that it is necessary to issue certain directions which may provide alternative to seeking transfer of proceedings on account of inability of a party to contest proceedings at a place away from their ordinary residence on the ground that if proceedings are not transferred it will result in denial of justice.
18. We, therefore, direct that in matrimonial or custody matters or in proceedings between parties to a marriage or arising out of disputes between parties to a marriage, wherever the defendants/respondents are located outside the jurisdiction of the court, the court where proceedings are instituted, may examine whether it is in the interest of justice to incorporate any safeguards for ensuring that summoning of defendant/respondent does not result in denial of justice. Order incorporating such safeguards may be sent along with the summons. The safeguards can be:-
i) Availability of video conferencing facility.
ii) Availability of legal aid service.
iii) Deposit of cost for travel, lodging and boarding in terms of Order XXV CPC.
iv) E-mail address/phone number, if any, at which litigant from out station may communicate.
Therefore the aforementioned guidelines were issued to all the High courts to make arrangements for video conferencing instead of transferring the petition, therefore dismissing all the transfer petition filed in the Hon’ble Supreme Court.
But recently, I was successful in admitting one of my transfer petition in Hon’ble Supreme Court on the ground that the proceedings were vitiated by fraud.
In that proceedings the husband has deliberately filed the petition at a far off place only to harass the wife. the Hon’ble Supreme Court accepted this is a valid ground for entertaining the petition and issued notice.
There can be other grounds as well like-:
a. Manipulation of court records.
b. Attack on wife.
c. Petition filed to harass wife
d. Petition filed without jurisdiction by reading petition only.
For husband the judgement of Krishna Veni Nagam vs Harish Nigam is a valid defense for husbands for defending transfer petition supreme court.
By-:
Advocate Nitish Banka
Supreme Court of India
