Jyoti Jindal v. Rajesh Jindal

1. The present Petition has been filed on behalf of the Petitioner under Section 115 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 [hereinafter referred to as “CPC”] against the order dated 31.05.2024 passed by learned Principal Judge, Family Court, Rohini Court, Delhi [hereinafter referred to as “Impugned Order”].

2. By the Impugned Order, the cross-examination of the Petitioner has been closed by the learned Trial Court. The record reveals that a petition for divorce under Section 13(1)(i-b) of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 [hereinafter referred to as “HM Act”] was filed by the Petitioner and the Impugned Order was an interim order passed in such petition.

3. The maintainability of this Petition is a subject matter of challenge. It is no longer res integra that the provisions of Section 115 of the CPC cannot ` be invoked except where an order, if made in favour of the revisionist, would have finally disposed of the suit or proceedings. This is set out in the proviso to Section 115 of the CPC below: “Section 115 – Revision The High Court may call for the record of any case which has been decided by any Court subordinate to such High Court and in which no appeal lies thereto, and if such subordinate Court appears (a) to have exercised a jurisdiction not vested in it by law, or (b) to have failed to exercise a jurisdiction so vested, or

(c) to have acted in the exercise of its jurisdiction illegally or with material irregularity, the High Court may make such order in the case as it thinks fit: Provided that the High Court shall not, under this section, vary or reverse any order made, or any order deciding an issue, in the course of a suit or other proceeding, except where the order, if it had been made in favour of the party applying for revision would have finally disposed of the suit or other proceedings.” [Emphasis Supplied] 3.[1] The Supreme Court in Shiv Shakti Coop. Housing Society, Nagpur v. Swaraj Developers & Ors.[1] has held that unless the order if given in favour of the party applying for the revision would have given finality to the suit or other proceeding, a revision is not maintainable. The relevant extract of the Shiv Shakti case is set out below:

` or pending before the amendment came into force. Such an intent is significantly absent in Section 32(2)(i). The amendment relates to procedures. No person has a vested right in a course of procedure. He has only the right of proceeding in the manner prescribed. If by a statutory change the mode of procedure is altered, the parties are to proceed according to the altered mode, without exception, unless there is a different stipulation.” 3.[2] In the case of Gayatri Devi v. Shashi Pal Singh[2], the Supreme Court while relying on the Shiv Shakti Coop. Housing Society case has held that an order interim in nature or which does not finally decide the lis, cannot be challenged by way of a revision under Section 115 CPC. “14. In the first place, it appears to us that the revision petition before the High Court was wholly incompetent in view of the amended provision of Section 115 CPC. The revision petition was entertained at the stage of interlocutory proceedings. As laid down by this Court in Shiv Shakti Coop. Housing Society v. Swaraj Developers [(2003) 6 SCC 659] an order interim in nature or which does not finally decide the lis, cannot be challenged by way of a revision under Section 115 CPC.”

4 The Impugned Order is an order passed in divorce proceedings under Section 13(1) (i-b) of the HM Act in terms of which a party’s right to crossexamination has been closed by the learned Trial Court. This order does not finally decide the lis between the parties and thus, is not amenable to revisional jurisdiction under Section 115 of the CPC before this Court.

5. For the reasons as stated above, the present Petition is not maintainable under Section 115 of the CPC and is accordingly dismissed. The pending Applications also stand closed.

6. However, liberty is granted to the Petitioner to agitate all contentions

TARA VITASTA GANJU, J JULY 11, 2025/ ha