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1954 Supreme(AP) 117

Andhra Pradesh High Court
Judges : P.SATYANARAYANA RAJU
Vishakapatnam Co-operative Motor Transport Society Ltd. - Appellant
Versus
M.Subba Rao - Respondent
Decided On : 12-10-54

A High Court cannot issue a writ of certiorari to a person or authority located outside its territorial jurisdiction, and this lack of jurisdiction cannot be waived by consent of the parties.

Headnote:

CONSTITUTIONAL LAW - WRIT OF CERTIORARI - JURISDICTION - OFFICE OF COMMISSIONER FOR WORKMENS COMPENSATION LOCATED OUTSIDE TERRITORIAL JURISDICTION OF HIGH COURT - NO WRIT CAN BE ISSUED - WAIVER OF OBJECTION TO JURISDICTION NOT PERMISSIBLE.

Fact of the Case:

Petitioner filed a writ petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India for the issuance of a Writ of Certiorari to quash the orders of the Commissioner for Workmens Compensation. The Commissioner's office was temporarily located in Madras, outside the territorial jurisdiction of the Andhra High Court.

Finding of the Court:

The High Court held that it did not have jurisdiction to issue a writ of certiorari to the Commissioner for Workmens Compensation since the Commissioner's office was located outside its territorial jurisdiction. The court also held that the Government's offer to waive its objection to jurisdiction did not avail the petitioner since the lack of jurisdiction was a total want of jurisdiction, which could not be waived.

Issues: 1. Whether the High Court had jurisdiction to issue a writ of certiorari to the Commissioner for Workmens Compensation whose office was located outside its territorial jurisdiction. 2. Whether the Government's offer to waive its objection to jurisdiction could confer jurisdiction on the High Court.

Ratio Decidendi: 1. The High Court's jurisdiction to issue writs under Article 226 of the Constitution is limited to the territories over which it exercises jurisdiction. 2. A total want of jurisdiction cannot be waived by consent of the parties.

Final Decision: The petition was dismissed with costs.

P. SATYANARAYANA RAJU, J.

( 1 ) THIS is a petition under Art. of the Constitution of India for the issue of a Writ of Certiorari to call for the records in Case No. 482 of 1953 on the file of the Commissioner for Workmens Compensation of Andhra at Madras and to issue an appropriate writ quashing the orders of the Commissioner for Workmens Compensation.

( 2 ) A preliminary objection was raised by the respondents Advocate that the Writ Petition is not maintainable in as much as the Commissioner for Workmens Compensation has his office at Madras, outside the territorial juririsdiction of the High Court of Andhra.

( 3 ) FOLLOWING the decisions of the Supreme Court in -- Election Commr. , India v. Saka Venkata Rao, AIR 1953 SC 210 (A) the learned Chief Justice of Andhra held in -- V. Janaiah v. Board of Revenue, Andhra, (S) AIR 1935 Andhra 23 (B) that the Board, which is situated in the City of Madras, is not within the area of the Andhra State over which the Andhra High Court has jurisdiction and that no Writ under Article 226 could be issued to it. In this view, Writ Petition must be held to be not maintainable.

( 4 ) BUT the learned Counsel for the petitioner submitted that the office of the Commissioner for Workmens Compensation is temporarily located at Madras and the Government may waive their objection to the jurisdiction of the Andhra High Court hearing the petition. At the time of the hearing of the petition, the learned Govt. Pleader represented that the Government are wiling to waive the objection as to jurisdiction. Even so, the respondents Advocate contends that an objection to jurisdiction cannot be waived and this Court cannot exercise its jurisdiction by consent of parties.

( 5 ) ARTICLE 226 (1) of the Constitution of India runs as follows :"notwithstanding anything in Article 32, every High Court shall have power throughout the territories in relation to which it exercise jurisdiction, to issue to any person or authority, including in appropriate cases any Government, within those territories, directions, orders or writs, including writs in the nature of Habeas Corpus, Mandamus, prohibition, quo warranto and Certiorari or any of them for the enforcement of any of the rights conferred by Part III and for any other purpose. "

( 6 ) AT pp. 212 - 213 of the Supreme Court decision, Patanjali Sastri C. J. , stated as follows :"but wide as were the powers thus conferred a two-fold limitation was placed upon their exercise. In the first place, the power is to be exercised throughout the territories in relation to which it exercises jurisdiction that is to say, the writs issued by the court cannot run beyond the territories subject to its jurisdiction. Secondly, the person or authority to whom the High Court is empowered to issue such writs must be within those territories, which clearly implies that they must be amenable to its jurisdiction, either by residence or location within those territories. "

( 7 ) THE fact that the office of the Commissioner for Workmens Compensation is temporarily located in the City of Madras does not in my view, make any difference. It is the location within its territorial limits that gives jurisdiction to this Court and so long as the once is located outside the territorial jurisdiction of this court, it is immaterial whether that location is temporary or permanent. In either case the jurisdiction to issue a writ does not exist.

( 8 ) THEN the question as to whether there can be a waiver of objection to jurisdiction falls to be considered. In Mullas Code of Civil Procedure, 12th edition, at page 129 the following passage occurs under the heading "waiver of Objections" to jurisdiction :"where by reason of any limitation imposed by Statute Charter, or Commission, a court is without jurisdiction to entertain any particular action or matter, neither the acquiescence nor the express consent of the parties can confer jurisdiction upon the Court, nor can consent give a court jurisdiction if a condition





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