Important Point – Valuation for relief of specific performance of an agreement, for purposes of court fees and jurisdiction has to be same.

1. The plaintiff has sued for a) specific performance of an Agreement of Sale of one room set on the ground floor of property bearing No.1954, Gali Neela Wali, Gali Arya Samaj, Bazar Sita Ram, Delhi-110006 for a sale consideration of Rs.4,50,000/-; and, (b) for permanent injunction restraining the defendants from selling or transferring the said one room set agreed to be sold to the plaintiff to anyone else and from dispossessing the plaintiff therefrom.

2. The suit for the relief of specific performance of an agreement, for the purposes of court fees, as per Section 7(x) of the Court Fees Act, 1870 is to be valued according to the amount of the consideration and the valuation thereof for the purpose of jurisdiction, as per Section 8 of the Suits Valuation Act, 1887, is to be the same as for the purpose of court fees. Thus the valuation of the suit for the relief of specific performance of the Agreement of Sale, for the purpose of court fees and jurisdiction is Rs.4,50,000/-.

3. Para no.12 of the plaint with respect to valuation of the reliefs claimed therein, is however as under:

“12. That the value of the suit for the purposes of jurisdiction is more than Rs.1 crore (Rs.2,30,40,000) as the cause of action is based on a Collaboration Agreement for construction of the property bearing No.1954, Gali Neela Wali, Bazar Sita Ram, Delhi-110006. However, for the purpose of relief prayed the value is Rs.4,50,000/- being the value of one room set on the Ground Floor of the said property (i.e. the suit property) on which the court-fee of Rs.6,737/- and for the purpose of relief of permanent injunction the value is Rs.130/- on which the court-fee of Rs.13/- is paid and, thus, the total court-fee of Rs.6,750/- is attached.”

4. Owing to the aforesaid, the suit has been instituted in this Court whose minimum original civil pecuniary jurisdiction, as per Section 5 of the Delhi High Court Act, 1966, exceeds Rs.2 crores.

5. I have already noticed above that the valuation for the relief of specific performance of an agreement, for purposes of court fees and jurisdiction has to be the same. The plaintiff here has however valued the relief of specific performance for purposes of jurisdiction at Rs.2,30,40,000/- and for court fees at Rs.4,50,000/-. If this suit, for the relief of specific performance, for purposes of jurisdiction had been valued at Rs.4,50,000/- as required by law, the suit should have been instituted in the Court of the District Judge.

6. The plaintiff did indeed file the suit before the Court of the District Judge only but the learned Additional District Judge (ADJ) to whom the suit was marked vide order dated 18th January, 2016 returned the plaint to the plaintiff observing/holding as under:

“18.01.2016

Fresh suit has been received by way of assignment. It be checked and registered as per rules.

Present: Sh. N.L. Singh Advocate for the plaintiff.

At the very outset, Ld. Counsel for the plaintiff admits that the dispute in question relates to a Collaboration Agreement dated 17.01.2013 in respect of property bearing No.1954, Gali Neela Wali, Bazar Sita Ram, Delhi-110006 for construction of ground floor plus four floors, the minimum Circle Rates of which area as per the notified circle rates is Rs.90,000/- per square meter and hence the Specified Value as calculated in terms of Section 12 of the Commercial Courts, Commercial Division and Commercial Appellate Division of High Court Act, 2015 of all the five floors proposed to be constructed as per the agreement would be more than Rs. One Crore. He further submits that since the question with regard to the maintainability of the suit in view of the Commercial Courts, Commercial Division and Commercial Appellate Division of High Courts Act, 2015 has arisen, hence he has instructions to seek an return of plaint along with the Court Fees and original documents with liberty to file the same before the court of competent jurisdiction on similar grounds without prejudice to the rights an