Are you having trouble coming up with a petition before the High Court that will most effectively present your case? Or would you rather a thorough checklist that you might use to make sure your application has all the necessary components of a Revision Petition? Or are you just curious about the mechanics of a Revision Petition in court? Then you should read this article.
What is a Revision Petition?
A Revision Petition is an application made to a High Court to correct the mistakes made by the Courts subordinate to it. The High Court of a State has power to supervise the works of the subordinate court under its Jurisdiction. The High Court has power to oversee, correct and improve if the sub-court has committed any illegality, irregularity, capriciously, has acted arbitrary, or has committed some error in procedure.
When can you file a Revision Petition?
*The impugned order amounts to a case decided.
*The case has been decided by a court subordinate to the High Court. (a court can pass a number of orders in a suit and such order need not be the final one.)
*No appeal must be filed against the suit in the High Court or any other court which is subordinate to the High Court.
The subordinate court appears to have:
*Exercised jurisdiction not vested in it by law;
*Failed to exercise jurisdiction vested;
*To have acted in the exercise of the Judge illegally or material irregularity.
Where should you file a Revision Petition?
Revisionary power can only be enforced by the High Court of the State. It comes under the Appellate Jurisdiction of the High Court. It is almost similar to the power of courts under Article 226 and 227 of the High Court, but the writ jurisdiction powers are much wider.
Limitation Period
The period of limitation for filing a revision application is 90 days from the date of decree or order of the subordinate court.
Checklist for a Revision Petition Case-
*A prima facie case should be in your favor where the lower court has acted beyond its jurisdiction or failed to exercise its jurisdiction.
*The order should be final, it should not be for a temporary period of time or an interim order.
* The Order should not be an appealable order i.e. no appeal can lie either in a High Court (directly or indirectly) or any other court.
How should your draft be for a Revision Petition?
1.The necessary format should be followed which is the cause title, name of court, memo of parties, Index, etc.(Look into the applicable state rules as various states have certain additional requirements. Like in Delhi High Court you should certainly provide with an Index and List of Dates and Events).
2.The first para should state that a revision petition is filed under section 115 of the CPC and thereby the petitioner is challenging the impugned order of the subordinate court. Also, mention the case number and attach a Certified Copy of the order which you are challenging.
3.Describe briefly where the subordinate court has gone wrong and justify your reason for approaching the court. This para should be able to convey the outline of your case and the Judge should have a fair outline of what you are going to explain in the paras below.
4.State a brief explanation of the original suit so the Judge has a better understanding of why you have approached the High Court for revision. Do not delve into the facts of the case and explain in detail as the High Court only looks if there has been a ‘Jurisdictional error’.
5.After stating the brief facts in 3 to 7 paragraphs (there is no rule as to how many paragraphs, this explanation depends on the dispute and matter in hand, some cases may require lengthy paragraphs and some may not. There is no straight jacket formula for applying this rule.)
6.You should state in concise terms the facts and where the subordinate court had committed a jurisdictional error or had acted with illegality or immorality. This can be essentially under the head of grounds for filing the revision petition.
7.Under the grounds explain all of the reasons which led to the filing of the present revision petition. Provide the court with valid provisions applicable and where the Sub-Court had failed to use its powers or had no power but had used it which has caused injustice to the petitioner and if it’s a violation of natural justice principle or fair trial state that also.
8.If, in case it is difficult for you to find the grounds you can take a crux/ratio of a judgement and quote it as a ground. Like in the particular SC Case the Apex Court had held that this should be followed in these kinds of proceedings. The lower court has disregarded it. Thus, it is an irregularity and a case fit for revision.
9.State why the intervention of the higher court is necessary and explain briefly the consequences of non-intervention. Also state that it would be grave injustice caused to the petitioner if the court does not intervene.
10.State the next date of hearing and before which court the case is pending. Also attach a copy of your plaint/written statement, in case the Revisionary Court finds it important to look into the plaint/written statement to better understand the problem. The reason for providing a date is so that, if a stay order is granted, the court would definitely want to know when the next hearing is.
11.In the last paragraphs state that there is no appeal directly or indirectly to the High Court or to any other court subordinate to it.
12.Prayer should state the exact requirements or remedies which you seek from the court.
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