Chapter III SUBORDINATE COURTS

In addition to the Court of the Judicial Commissioner and the courts of small causes established under the Provincial Small Cause Courts Act, 1887 (IX of 1887), and the courts established under any other law for the time being in force, there shall be the following classes of civil courts in the 1 [Union territory of Manipur], namely:—

1. (i) the district court;
2. (ii) the court of a subordinate judge;
3. (iii) the court of a munsiff: Provided that the court of a subordinate judge shall be established only with effect from such date as the Chief Commissioner may, by notification in the Official Gazette, specify.

1. (1) For the purposes of this Chapter, the Chief Commissioner may, by notification in the Official Gazette, divide the 1 [Union territory of Manipur] into civil districts and sub-divisions, alter the limits or the number of these districts and sub-divisions and determine the headquarters of each district and sub-division.
2. (2) The Chief Commissioner shall, after consultation with the Judicial Commissioner, appoint as many persons as he thinks necessary to be district judges and shall post one of these persons to each district as district judge of that district: Provided that the same person may, if the Chief Commissioner thinks fit, be appointed to be district judge of two or more districts.

1. (1) When the business pending before the court of a district judge requires the aid of an additional district judge for its speedy disposal, the Chief Commissioner may, after consultation with the Judicial Commissioner, appoint such number of additional district judges as may be necessary.
2. (2) The additional district judges so appointed shall discharge any of the functions of a district judge which the district Judge may assign to them and in the discharge of those functions they shall exercise the same powers as the district judge.

1. (1) The Chief Commissioner may, after consultation with the Judicial Commissioner, fix the number of subordinate judges and munsiffs to be appointed and if there is a vacancy in that number, may, subject to the rules, if any, made under sub-section (2), appoint such person as is nominated by the Judicial Commissioner to the vacancy.
2. (2) The Chief Commissioner may, after consultation with the Judicial Commissioner, make rules as to the qualifications of persons to be appointed as subordinate judges and munsiffs.

The district court shall be the principal civil court of original jurisdiction in the district.

Save as otherwise provided by any other law for the time being in force, the district court, shall, subject to the provisions of section 15 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (5 of 1908), have original jurisdiction in all civil suits without limit as regards the value.

The jurisdiction in original civil suits as regards the value to be exercised by a subordinate judge or a munsiff shall be determined by the Chief Commissioner in such manner as he thinks fit, after consultation with the Judicial Commissioner: Provided that in no case shall the jurisdiction of a munsiffbe without limit.

1. (1) The local limits of the jurisdiction of the court of a subordinate judge or a munsiff shall be such as the Chief Commissioner may, by notification in the Official Gazette, define.
2. (2) When the Chief Commissioner posts a subordinate judge to a district, the local limits of the district shall, in the absence of any direction to the contrary, be the local limits of his jurisdiction.

The Judicial Commissioner may, by notification in the Official Gazette, confer within such local limits as he thinks fit, upon any district judge, subordinate judge or munsiff, the jurisdiction of a judge of the court of small causes under the Provincial Small Cause Courts Act, 1887 (9 of 1887), for the trial of suits of the nature cognizable by such courts upto such value not exceeding five hundred rupees, as he thinks fit and may withdraw any jurisdiction so conferred.

1. (1) The Judicial Commissioner may, by general or special order, authorize any subordinate judge or munsiff to take cognizance of, or any district judge to transfer to a subordinate judge or a munsiff under his administrative control, any proceeding or class of proceedings specified in such order, under—
   • (a) the Indian Succession Act, 1925 (39 1925); or
   • (b) the Guardians and Wards Act, 1890 (8 of 1890); or
   • (c) the Provincial Insolvency Act, 1920 (5 of 1920).
2. (2) The district judge may withdraw any such proceeding taken cognizance of by, or transferred to, a subordinate judge or a munsiff and may either himself dispose of them or transfer it for disposal to any other competent court under his administrative control.
3. (3) Proceedings taken cognizance of by, or transferred to, a subordinate judge or a munsiff under this section shall be disposed of by him subject to the rules applicable to like proceedings when disposed of by the district judge: Provided that an appeal from an order of the munsiff in any such proceedings shall lie to the district judge.
4. (4) An appeal from the order of the district judge on appeal from the order of a munsiff under this section shall lie to the Court of the Judicial Commissioner if a further appeal from the order of the district judge is allowed by the law for the time being in force.

1. (1) The Chief Commissioner may, by order, fix a place or places at which any court constituted under this Chapter is to be held.
2. (2) The place or places so fixed may be beyond the local limits of the jurisdiction of the court.
3. (3) Save as otherwise provided by an order under this section, a court constituted under this Act may be held at any place within the local limits of its jurisdiction.

Subject to the general superintendence and control of the Court of the Judicial Commissioner, the district judge shall have administrative control over all the civil courts under this Chapter within the local limits of his jurisdiction.

Notwithstanding anything contained in the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (5 of 1908), the district judge may, by written order, direct that any business cognizable by his court and the courts under his control shall be distributed among such courts, and in such manner, as he thinks fit: Provided that no direction issued under this section shall empower any court to exercise any power and deal with any business beyond the limits of its jurisdiction.

Every court under this Chapter shall use a seal of such form and dimension as are prescribed by the Chief Commissioner.

1. (1) Ministerial officers of the district court shall be appointed by the district judge.
2. (2) Ministerial officers of civil courts under the administrative control of the district judge shall be appointed by the district judge.
3. (3) Every appointment under this section shall be subject to such rules as the Judicial Commissioner may make in this behalf.
4. (4) Any order passed by the district judge under this section shall be liable to be reversed or modified by the Judicial Commissioner.

The district judge may, with the previous sanction of the Judicial Commissioner, delegate to the judge of any court under his administrative control all or any of the powers conferred on a district judge by section 27 and section 28 of this Act and on a district court by section 24 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (5 of 1908), to be exercised by the judge in any specified portion of the district subject to the control of the district judge.

Save as otherwise provided by any law for the time being in force, appeals from decrees or orders of courts exercising original jurisdiction shall lie as follows:—

1. (a) from a decree or order of a munsiff in any suit and of a subordinate judge in a suit the value of which does not exceed five thousand rupees, to the court of the district judge; and
2. (b) in all other cases, to the court of the Judicial Commissioner.

A second appeal shall lie to the court of the Judicial Commissioner from an appellate decree or order of a district court on any ground on which a second appeal lies under section 100 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (5 of 1908).

In addition to the powers conferred by section 115 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (5 of 1908), the Court of the Judicial Commissioner may, on application made to it, call for the record of any case which has been decided by a civil court subordinate to it and in which no appeal lies to it and if the Court of the Judicial Commissioner is of opinion that there is an important question of law or custom and the question requires further consideration, the Court of the Judicial Commissioner may make such order in the case as it thinks fit: Provided that—

1. (i) no application shall be admitted after the expiration of ninety days from the date of the decision in respect of which the application is made unless the applicant satisfies the Court of the Judicial Commissioner that he had sufficient cause for not making application within that period;
2. (ii) on any such application the Court of the Judicial Commissioner shall not revise the decision of the court below except in so far as such decision involves a question of law or custom in respect of which the application has been admitted; and
3. (iii) when any such application has been admitted the Court of the Judicial Commissioner shall, subject to clause (ii) of this proviso, treat the matter of the application as if it were an appeal. Explanation 1.—The question of procedure is not a question of law or custom within the meaning of this section. Explanation 2.—In computing the period of limitation mentioned in clause (i) of this proviso and in all other respects not herein specified, the period of limitation of the application shall be governed by the provisions of the Indian Limitation Act, 1908 (5 of 1908).

1. (1) The court fees payable on applications to the Court of the Judicial Commissioner for the exercise of its jurisdiction under section 34 shall be such as are prescribed by the Chief Commissioner in consultation with the Judicial Commissioner.
2. (2) If the Court of the Judicial Commissioner, on an application in respect of which the court fee payable under sub-section (1) has been paid, sets aside or modifies a decree or order of the court below or remands the case for further decision, the Court of the Judicial Commissioner may grant to the applicant a certificate authorising him to receive back from the Collector of the district in which the court below is situated or from such other officer as the Chief Commissioner may authorise by notification in the Official Gazette, the full amount of such court fee or such part thereof as the Court of the Judicial Commissioner having regard to the circumstances of the case may think fit.

In the event of death of a district judge or of his being prevented from performing his duties by illness or other cause or of his absence from the civil district on leave, the additional district judge, if any, in the district or where there is no additional district judge, the senior-most subordinate judge, or as the case may be, the senior-most munsiff in the district shall assume charge of the district court without interruption of his ordinary jurisdiction and being so in charge shall perform the duties of the district judge with respect to the filing of suits and appeals, receiving pleadings, execution of processes, return of writs and the like, and shall be designated as the additional district judge or the subordinate judge or the munsiff, as the case may be, in charge of the district and shall continue in such charge until the office of the district judge has been resumed by him or assumed by an officer duly appointed thereto.

Any district judge leaving headquarters and proceeding on duty to any place in the district may delegate to the additional district judge, if any, or where there is no such additional district judge, to a subordinate judge or, as the case may be, to a munsiff at the headquarters, the power of performing such duties enumerated in section 36 as may be emergent and such officer shall be designated as the additional district judge or the subordinate judge or the munsiff, as the case may be, in charge of the headquarter.

In the event of death, suspension or temporary absence of a subordinate-judge or a munsiff, the district judge may empower any other subordinate judge or munsiff of the same civil district to continue the duties of the vacated court of the subordinate judge or munsiff either at the place of such court or of his own court but in every such case the register and record of the court shall be kept distinct.