Nawal Kishore Sharma, a seaman with the Shipping Corporation of India, was declared permanently unfit for sea service in 2011 due to dilated cardiomyopathy after over 20 years of service, leading him to return to his native Bihar where he claimed disability compensation, which was rejected via correspondence addressed to him there.
He filed a writ petition in Patna High Court seeking compensation, but it was dismissed for lack of territorial jurisdiction as the employment and decisions occurred outside Bihar; an interim order had granted partial payment, yet jurisdiction was later denied.
On appeal to the Supreme Court, the court reasoned that under Article 226(2) of the Constitution, jurisdiction exists if even a fraction of the cause of action arises within the High Court's territory, and here, the receipt of the rejection letter and correspondences in Bihar constituted such a fraction, further noting the respondents' participation without initial objection estopped them from raising the issue later. The Supreme Court allowed the appeal, set aside the High Court's dismissal, and remitted the case to Patna High Court for adjudication on merits.
Law Point:
The High Court can exercise jurisdiction under Article 226 of the Constitution if the cause of action, wholly or in part, arises within its territorial limits, even if the authority or person is outside the territory: paras 9, 16.
"Cause of action" under Article 226(2) is assigned the same meaning as under Section 20(c) CPC, being a bundle of facts necessary for the petitioner to prove infringement of a legal right: Nawal Kishore Sharma v. Union of India, (2014) 9 SCC 329, paras 9, 13-14.
Even a fraction of cause of action, such as receipt of a communication rejecting a claim, suffices to confer territorial jurisdiction on the High Court, paras 17-19.
Participation in writ proceedings without raising jurisdictional objection at the interim stage may estop the respondent from later challenging maintainability on that ground: para 19.
Case Title: Nawal Kishore Sharma Vs. Union of India, Order date: August 7, 2014, Case Number: Civil Appeal No. 7414 of 2014, Neutral Citation: (2014) 9 SCC 329
[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]
