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Issues:
- Jurisdiction of civil court in a suit involving shares under the Companies Act, 1956. Detailed Analysis: 1. The petition challenged the Trial Court's decision rejecting an application under order 7 rule 11 read with section 151 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908. The respondent filed a suit for declaration, injunction, and cancellation of original shares and issuing duplicate shares. The plaintiff claimed ownership of 300 shares and bonus shares, seeking benefits and an injunction against share transfer without consent. The defendants argued that the suit was barred by the Companies Act provisions, while the plaintiff contended that the civil court's jurisdiction was not ousted. The Trial Court sided with the plaintiff, leading to the revision petition. 2. The defendants relied on sections 111 and 113 of the Companies Act, 1956, stating that the Act's provisions provided a complete mechanism for addressing the plaintiff's grievances, thus excluding civil court jurisdiction. Conversely, the plaintiff argued that no express bar existed against entertaining such suits, maintaining that the civil court could grant a declaration regarding share ownership despite Act provisions. 3. Referring to relevant sections of the Companies Act, the judgment highlighted the exclusive jurisdiction of the Company Law Board (CLB) in rectifying share-related matters. Citing the Supreme Court's decision in Ammonia Supplies Corpn. (P.) Ltd. v. Modern Plastic Containers (P.) Ltd, it was noted that the civil court's jurisdiction was impliedly barred in cases within the CLB's exclusive purview. The judgment emphasized that the Trial Court should have determined if the plaintiff's grievance fell under the Act's machinery, indicating that the suit was cognizable by the CLB, not the civil court. 4. The judgment concluded that the plaintiff's case, involving the transfer of shares obtained through misrepresentation or fraud, was within the CLB's jurisdiction. Therefore, the civil court lacked authority under section 9 of the Code to adjudicate on the matter. Consequently, the revision petition was allowed, the Trial Court's order was set aside, and the plaint was rejected, affirming the exclusive jurisdiction of the CLB in such share-related disputes under the Companies Act, 1956.
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