The Delhi High Court, in Asian Patent Attorneys Association (Indian Group) v. Registrar General, Delhi High Court, W.P.(C) 1950/2018, decided on 30 January 2026 by a Division Bench comprising Justice C. Hari Shankar and Justice Om Prakash Shukla, set aside an administrative order that prohibited the filing of execution petitions in the High Court where the decree amount was below ₹2 crore. The judgment was delivered by the High Court of Delhi at New Delhi. No neutral citation was mentioned in the judgment.
The dispute arose from an administrative order dated 17 November 2016 issued after the enhancement of the Delhi High Court’s pecuniary jurisdiction from ₹20 lakh to ₹2 crore, directing the Registry not to accept fresh execution petitions involving money decrees up to ₹2 crore. The petitioner challenged the legality of this restriction, contending that litigants could not be denied the right to file execution petitions before the Court.
The High Court held that neither the Delhi High Court (Amendment) Act, 2015 nor any other provision empowered the Registry to impose a blanket bar on the filing of such petitions. The Court emphasized that while the Registry may raise objections regarding jurisdiction, it cannot refuse to accept filings. Questions relating to maintainability and jurisdiction must be decided judicially by the Court and not administratively by the Registry.
Allowing the writ petition in part, the Court quashed the portion of the administrative order that directed the Registry not to accept execution petitions involving decrees below ₹2 crore. The Court clarified that jurisdictional objections could still be raised by the Registry, but the matter must ultimately be placed before the Court for adjudication.
[Disclaimer: Readers are advised not treat this as a substitute for legal advise as it may contain errors in perception,interpretation and presentation of facts and law.]
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Delhi High Court Reaffirms Right of Litigants to Access Courts: Registry Cannot Refuse Filing of Execution Petitions Below ₹2 Crore
Powers of Delhi High Court Registry and Right to Access Courts
Introduction:
The judgment delivered by the Delhi High Court on 30 January 2026 in Asian Patent Attorneys Association (Indian Group) v. Registrar General, Delhi High Court is an important decision concerning access to justice and the powers of court registries. The case arose from an administrative order issued by the Delhi High Court Registry after the enhancement of the Court's pecuniary jurisdiction from ₹20 lakh to ₹2 crore under the Delhi High Court (Amendment) Act, 2015.
The central issue before the Court was not whether execution petitions involving decrees below ₹2 crore should ultimately be heard by the High Court or District Courts. Rather, the question was whether the Registry could completely refuse to accept such petitions at the filing stage. The judgment is significant because it reinforces the principle that administrative authorities attached to courts cannot prevent litigants from approaching the judiciary and that questions of jurisdiction must ultimately be decided by judges exercising judicial power.
Factual and Procedural Background:
The petitioner, Asian Patent Attorneys Association (Indian Group), challenged an Administrative Order dated 17 November 2016 issued by the Registrar (Original) of the Delhi High Court. The order directed the Registry not to accept fresh execution petitions where money decrees were for amounts up to ₹2 crore. The order was based on the enhancement of the pecuniary jurisdiction of the Delhi High Court from ₹20 lakh to ₹2 crore through the Delhi High Court (Amendment) Act, 2015, which came into force on 26 October 2015.
The administrative order further directed identification and transfer of pending execution petitions involving decrees up to ₹2 crore to the concerned District Courts. Following the order, a note was also published in the cause list informing litigants that fresh execution petitions concerning decrees up to ₹2 crore would not be accepted by the High Court Registry.
Before the Division Bench, the petitioner confined its challenge only to the first part of the administrative order which prohibited acceptance of fresh execution petitions. The petitioner did not challenge the transfer of already pending matters to District Courts.
Dispute Before the Court:
The dispute concerned whether the Delhi High Court Registry could refuse to accept execution petitions merely because the decree amount was below ₹2 crore.
The petitioner argued that Section 37 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 recognizes the continuing authority of the court that originally passed the decree. It was submitted that even after enhancement of pecuniary jurisdiction, execution petitions could remain maintainable before the High Court. At the very least, whether a petition was maintainable was a judicial question requiring adjudication by a court and not a matter that could be decided administratively by the Registry.
On the other hand, the respondent relied upon the Delhi High Court (Amendment) Act, 2015 and argued that the administrative order was intended to give effect to the legislative change that transferred jurisdiction over matters valued below ₹2 crore to District Courts.
The Court therefore had to determine whether the Registry could impose a blanket prohibition on filing such petitions and whether the administrative order had legal authority.
Reasoning and Analysis of the Court:
The Division Bench held that the impugned administrative order could not be sustained in law. The Court provided two principal reasons.
The first reason related to the scope of statutory authority. The Court observed that the administrative order purported to derive support from Section 4 of the Delhi High Court (Amendment) Act, 2015. However, the provision merely empowered transfer of pending proceedings from the High Court to District Courts. It did not authorize the Registry to create a threshold bar preventing fresh proceedings from being filed before the High Court.
According to the Court, a power to transfer pending proceedings cannot be interpreted as a power to prohibit institution of proceedings altogether. Consequently, the Registry exceeded the authority contemplated by the statute.
The second and more fundamental reason was based on the principle of access to justice. The Court emphasized that no litigant can ordinarily be prevented from filing a proceeding before a court. If the Registry believes that a matter is not maintainable or is beyond the jurisdiction of the court, it may raise an objection. However, the Registry cannot assume the role of a judicial authority and refuse registration of the matter.
The Court explained that where disagreement exists between the Registry and the litigant regarding jurisdiction, the matter must be placed before the Court for a judicial determination. Judicial power belongs to judges and not to administrative officers of the Registry.
The Bench drew a distinction between "filing" a proceeding and "entertaining" a proceeding. Filing merely allows a litigant access to the judicial process, whereas entertaining a matter involves a judicial decision regarding maintainability and jurisdiction. The Court held that the power to entertain or reject a matter rests exclusively with the court hearing the case.
In emphasizing this distinction, the Court relied upon the Supreme Court judgment in Lakshmi Rattan Engineering Works Ltd. v. Commissioner of Sales Tax, AIR 1968 SC 488. The Supreme Court had approved the view expressed in Kundan Lal v. Jagan Nath Sharma, AIR 1962 All 547, that the expression "entertain" does not mean filing or admission of an application but refers to the stage when the matter is actually considered by the court. By relying upon this principle, the Delhi High Court clarified that even if a question regarding jurisdiction exists, litigants cannot be denied the opportunity to place the matter before a judge.
The petitioner had also relied upon Gulab Chand Sharma v. Smt. Saraswati Devi, AIR 1975 Del 210 and the Supreme Court decision in Merla Ramanna v. Nallaparaju, AIR 1956 SC 87. These authorities were cited to argue that a court which originally passed a decree does not automatically lose jurisdiction to execute it merely because territorial or pecuniary jurisdiction subsequently changes.
The Bench acknowledged that these arguments deserved consideration. However, it consciously refrained from deciding whether execution petitions involving decrees below ₹2 crore would ultimately be maintainable before the High Court. The Court considered it more appropriate to leave that issue for determination by the judge hearing any particular execution petition on the judicial side.
This restraint reflects an important aspect of the judgment. The Court focused only on the legality of the administrative order and deliberately avoided issuing broad pronouncements regarding future jurisdictional disputes.
Final Decision of the Court:
The Delhi High Court partly allowed the writ petition. The Court set aside the portion of the Administrative Order dated 17 November 2016 which directed the Registry not to accept execution petitions where the decree amount was below ₹2 crore.
The Court clarified that the Registry remains free to raise objections concerning jurisdiction. However, if the litigant insists that the petition is maintainable, the Registry must place the matter before the Court for judicial consideration. No blanket administrative prohibition can prevent a litigant from filing such proceedings.
Point of Law Settled in the Case:
The most important legal principle emerging from this judgment is that a court registry cannot impose an administrative bar preventing litigants from filing proceedings. Questions relating to jurisdiction, maintainability, or competence of the court must be decided judicially and not administratively.
The judgment further clarifies that statutory provisions authorizing transfer of pending proceedings do not automatically empower administrative authorities to prohibit filing of fresh proceedings. The distinction between filing a matter and entertaining a matter remains fundamental. While a court may ultimately decline to entertain a proceeding for want of jurisdiction, a litigant cannot ordinarily be denied access to the judicial process at the threshold stage by an administrative order.
Case Title: Asian Patent Attorneys Association (Indian Group) Vs Registrar General, Delhi High Court
Date of Judgment: 30 January 2026
Case Number: W.P.(C) 1950/2018
Neutral Citation: 2026:DHC:812-DB
Court: High Court of Delhi at New Delhi
Coram: Hon'ble Mr. Justice C. Hari Shankar and Hon'ble Mr. Justice Om Prakash Shukla
Disclaimer: Readers are advised not to treat this as substitute for legal advise as it may contain errors in perception, interpretation, and presentation.
Written By: Advocate Ajay Amitabh Suman, IP Adjutor [Patent and Trademark Attorney], High Court of Delhi
Headnote
The Delhi High Court held that the Registry cannot refuse to accept execution petitions merely because the decree amount is below ₹2 crore. Jurisdictional objections may be raised by the Registry, but the ultimate decision on maintainability must be taken by the Court exercising judicial power. Administrative directions cannot create a blanket bar on access to courts, and litigants must be permitted to place their cases before the court for adjudication.Suggested Google SEO Titles
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