RAMANLAL KANJIBHAI BARANDA Vs. COMMANDANT

JUDGEMENT

(1.) HEARD Mr. Y. H. Vyas, learned counsel for the petitioner and Mrs. Vasavdatta Bhatt, learned counsel appearing for the respondents.

(2.) THE short question that arises for consideration in this Special Civil Application is that if the petitioner is dismissed from service while he was serving as Head Constable in CRPF at Imphal, Manipur, whether the cause of action to sue would be available to the petitioner to file Special Civil Application, in Gujarat High Court on the ground that he is a resident of State of Gujarat ?

(3.) BY 15th Constitutional Amendment Act, 1963, Clause (1-A) was added to Article 226(1) which was re-numbered as Clause (2) by the 42nd Constitutional Amendment, 1976. The effect of the amendment was that writ jurisdiction of the High Court was extended to those cases also where only a part of cause of action had arisen within the territorial jurisdiction of a High Court. It is necessary to extract Clause (2) of Article 226 of the Constitution which reads as below:- "226(2) Power of High Courts to issue certain writs.- The power conferred by clause (1) to issue directions, orders or writs to any Government, authority or person may also be exercised by any High Court exercising jurisdiction in relation to the territories within which the cause of action, wholly or in part, arises for the exercise of such power, notwithstanding that the seat of such Government or authority or the residence of such person is not within those territories." Section 20 (c) of the Code of Civil Procedure and Article 226 (2) being pari materia, it is necessary to extract Section 20(c) which reads as under:- "20. Other suits to be instituted where defendants reside or cause of action arises.- Subject to the limitations aforesaid, every suit shall be instituted in a Court within the local limits of whose jurisdiction- xxx xxx xxx xxx (c)the cause of action, wholly or in part, arises." The expression "cause of action" has not been defined in any Statute. Cause of action means that the person or authority to whom the High Court is empowered to issue must be within the territorial limits of the High Court and even a small fraction of right to sue accrued within the jurisdiction of the High Court. In other words, the cause of action wholly or in part must had arisen within the territorial jurisdiction of the High Court. "Cause of action" is the bundle of facts which taken with applicable to them, gives the petitioner a right to relief against the respondent.