JUDGMENT :

Rajesh Bindal, CJ.

On a reference made by the learned Single Judge vide order dated December 10, 2021 to a larger Bench and constitution thereof by Hon'ble the Chief Justice, on administrative side, for consideration of the following questions, the matter has been placed before us :

''(i) Whether the order passed by District judge under Section 24 CPC is revisable under Section 115 CPC as applicable in the State of U.P.?

(ii) Whether another application under Section 24 CPC by the same applicant based on the same cause would be maintainable before the High Court, without challenging an order of the District Judge which has also been passed under Section 24 CPC under Section 115 CPC or Article 227 of the Constitution of India, as the case may be?

(iii) Whether pronouncements of this Court in the case of Sunit Devi and Indian Oil Corporation (supra) lay down the law correctly on the subject-matter in issue or it is the decision by a Co-ordinate Benches in the case of Jagdish Kumar and Amit Pachauri (supra) which understand and lay down the law correctly on the issues aforesaid?''

Transfer Application (Civil) No. -121 of 2021 :

2. It is a case in which the applicants filed an application under Section 24 of the CPC (Code of Civil Procedure, 1908) in the Court of District Judge, Unnao seeking transfer of Regular Suit No. 182 of 1996 (Babu Singh and others v. Raj Bahadur Singh) from the Court of Civil Judge, Junior Division, Safipur, District-Unnao to any other Court of Civil Judge, Junior Division, Unnao. The ground for seeking such transfer was that the husband of applicant No. 1/1, who is an Advocate, is pursuing their case and on each and every date he has to go to Tehsil Safipur, which is situated at a distance of more than 30 km from Unnao. Hence, it would be convenient for him to pursue the case, if the same is transferred to Unnao. When the application was rejected by the learned District Judge vide order dated September 20, 2021 on the ground that the property in question in the suit is situated in Safipur, District-Unnao, therefore, the case cannot transferred, being aggrieved, the applicants filed the present application under Section 24 CPC before this Court seeking the relief as sought for before the Court below.

Transfer Applications (Civil) No.-123 & 124 of 2021 :

3. In these cases, transfer of Regular Suit No. 2791 of 1996 (Babu Singh and others v. Raj Bahadur Singh) and Regular Suit No. 367 of 2018 (Shivji Virajman Mandir through Shivnath Singh v. Reena Singh and others) was sought respectively from the Court of Civil Judge, Junior Division, Safipur, District-Unnao to any other Court of Civil Judge, Junior Division, Unnao has been sought, on the same ground as taken in seeking transfer of Regular Suit No. 182 of 1996, by filing applications under Section 24 CPC. These applications were rejected by the learned District Judge vide order dated September 20, 2021. However, setting aside of the order dated September 20, 2021 passed by the District Judge has not been sought in both these applications filed under Section 24 CPC before this Court.

4. One of the issues which arose before the learned Single Judge was that in the event the applicant had already approached the Court below under Section 24 CPC for transfer of suit and an order was passed therein rejecting the application, whether there was any remedy available against such an order under Section 115 CPC or under Article 227 of the Constitution of India. The other issue was as to whether the order passed by the District Judge under Section 24 CPC is to be challenged either by filing a revision under Section 115 CPC assuming the same to be maintainable or under Section 227 of the Constitution of India or the applicant could straightway file an independent application under Section 24 CPC before the High Court seeking such transfer without challenging the order of the District Judge.

5. Owing to contrary decisions and difference of opinion on the aforesaid issue,