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TMI Blog1998 (2) TMI 520X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... he Code') on the ground that the matter relates to loss of equity shares and consequential reliefs and in view of the provisions of section 84 of the Companies Act, 1956 ('the Act') and the provisions of the City Civil Courts Act, particularly, item 10 of the First Schedule, such type of matter is not triable in the City Civil Court but is under the exclusive jurisdiction of this Court, that is, the High Court. 2. We have heard P.P. Banerjee, advocate for the appellant and P.C. Sen, advocate on behalf of the respondents. Shri Banerjee submits that the Act does not provide for adjudication of the dispute that has arisen between the parties and the jurisdiction of the city civil court vested in it by section 9 of the Code is not ousted by an ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... intimated the matter to the defendants and requested them to enquire the matter from the post office from where the registered cover had been posted. The plaintiff has further pleaded that it apprehends that the shares have been lost either in transit or some persons of the defendant-company having vested interest, after getting possession wrongfully, were trying to make illicit gain in an unauthorised manner. The plaintiff has prayed for a decree of declaration that the plaintiff is the lawful owner of 2,000 shares of defendant No. 1 - company and that the defendants are bound to transfer the same or issue duplicate share certificates in the name of the plaintiff. Mandatory injunction is also sought directing the defendants to make over t ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... fence against this Act, the Court of a Magistrate of the First Class or, as the case may be, a Presidency Magistrate, having jurisdiction to try such offence;" 5. Reference was also made during arguments to rule 4(3) of the Companies (Issue of Share Certificates) Rules, 1960 ('the Rules'), which reads as under : "(3) No duplicate share certificate shall be issued in lieu of those that are lost or destroyed, without the prior consent of the board or without payment of such fees, if any, not exceeding Rs. 2 and on such reasonable terms, if any, as to evidence and indemnity and the payment of out-of-pocket expenses incurred by the company in investigating evidence, as the board thinks fit." 6. A perusal of the aforesaid legal provisions wou ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... section 2(11). It is only where the Act provides for adjudication by 'the Court', the Court would mean 'the Court' as defined in section 2(11). The definition clause cannot be given the interpretation that whenever there is a dispute relating to a company, it is the company court as defined in section 2(11) that will have the jurisdiction. Similar view was taken by a Division Bench of this Court in Asansol Electric Supply Co. v. Chuntlal Daw 75 CWN 704 : "Section 2(11) is the definition section of the words "the Court". Therefore whenever the words 'the Court' are mentioned in the provisions of the Act, the same will mean the Court having jurisdiction under the Act with respect to that matter relating to a company as provided in section 1 ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... from which the present appeal has arisen and as such, the jurisdiction of the civil court vested under section 9 of the Code does not get ousted by the Act. 9. The learned counsel for the respondent also submits, in alternative, that the city civil court, Calcutta, does not have the jurisdiction because all the defendants reside or work at Bombay, that is, outside the jurisdiction of Courts in West Bengal and also because no part of the cause of action arose within West Bengal. It is no doubt true that all the defendants reside or work at Bombay. The question for decision, therefore, is whether any part of the cause of action arose within West Bengal. The case of the plaintiff is that the shares were sent by the plaintiff from Calcutta to ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ent in the manner intimated by the member. The learned counsel submits that the duty of delivering the share certificates after effecting the transfer was duly discharged by the defendant-company by sending the same by registered post and since the registered cover was delivered to the post office at Bombay, no part of the cause of action arose in West Bengal. However, we are unable to persuade overselves to agree with this submission. Section 53 raises a presumption about service of a document sent by registered post but that presumption is rebuttable. As such, where a document has been sent by registered post, and for some reason the same has not been delivered to the addressee, it cannot be said that the company stood discharged from its ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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