Judgment

BHAGWATI, J. :- Leave granted.

2. On the basis of a complaint lodged by one Muniyamma the police registered a case being Crime No. 90 of 1979 under Ss. 302 and 307 of the Penal Code and on completion of the investigation, filed a charge-sheet against the respondent for the offences under Ss. 302 and 307, IPC. The Chief Judicial Magistrate took cognizance of the offences and committed the case to the Court of Session, Bangalore. The Sessions Judge registered the case as Sessions Case No. 15/79. It appears that the jurisdiction of the Sessions Court was transferred to the Court of City and Sessions Judge, Bangalore and the High Court therefore by an order dated 30th Dec. 1980 made in exercise of the powers conferred under S. 407 of the Criminal P.C. withdrew Sessions Case No. 15/79 from the Sessions Judge, Bangalore and transferred it to the Principal City Civil and Sessions Judge, Metropolitan Area, Bangalore City for disposal in accordance with law. The Principal City Civil and Sessions Judge registered the case as Sessions Case No. 17/81 And by an Order dated 30th Jan. 1981, purporting to be in exercise of the power vested under S. 409(1) of the Criminal P.C. transferred the case to the VIth Additional City Civil and Sessions Judge, Bangalore. The VIth Additional City Civil and Sessions Judge tried Sessions Case No. 17/81 and at the end of the trial the respondent was convicted of the offences under S. 302 and S. 307, IPC and sentenced to suffer imprisonment for life. The respondent thereupon preferred an appeal to the High Court.

2. The High Court took the view that the Vlth Additional City Civil and Sessions Judge Bangalore had no jurisdiction to try Sessions Case No. 17/81, since that case has not been made over to him by the Principal City Civil and Sessions Judge, under S. 194 of the Criminal P.C. and the order of conviction and sentence passed by the Vlth Additional City Civil and Sessions Judge against the respondent was therefore vitiated. The High Court accordingly set aside the conviction and sentence recorded against the respondent and directed the Principal City Civil and Sessions Judge to see "that on receipt of the records, the trial of the said Sessions Case is held in accordance with law bearing in mind the aforementioned observations made in the Judgment." The State of Karanataka being aggrieved by this Order passed by the High Court preferred the present appeal after obtaining Special Leave from this Court.

3. Now it is obvious that the Judgment of the High Court is patently wrong and cannot be sustained and in fact Mr. Kapil Sibbal appearing on behalf of the respondent, with his usual candour and frankness, stated that it was difficult for him to support the Judgment. We may proceed on the basis that the Vlth Additional City Civil and Sessions Judge could try only such Sessions Cases as were made over to him by the Principal City Civil and Sessions Judge in exercise of the powers conferred under S. 194 of the Criminal P.C., though we are not at all sure that, even if the Vlth Addl. City Civil & Sessions Judge tried a Sessions Case which was not formally made over to him. The trial would be invalid, because in any event the Vlth Addl. City Civil & Sessions Judge would have inherent jurisdiction to try the Sessions Case. We need not however, go into that question because we find that there was an order made by the Principal City Civil & Sessions Judge on 30th Jan. 1981 making over Sessions Case No. 17/79 to the VIth Addl. City Civil & Sessions Judge, Bangalore. Undoubtedly this order was purported to be made by the Principal City Civil and Sessions Judge in exercise of the powers conferred under S. 409 of the Criminal P.C. and this Section did not confer power on the Principal City Civil and Sessions Judge to make over Sessions Case No. 17/79 to the VIth Additional City Civil Sessions Judge. But it is now well-settled that merely because an order is purported to be made under a wrong provision of law, it