Curtailment of Revisional Jurisdiction of High Courts in India: A Critique

Abstract

The jurisdiction exercised by the High Courts in India under Section 115 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 is called the revisional jurisdiction of the High Courts. It has been conferred on the High Courts for effective exercise of the High Court’s superintending and visitorial powers over the subordinate courts. The revisional jurisdiction of the High Courts has undergone a radical metamorphosis since its inception. Today the powers and functions of the High Courts in India stands altered to suit the roles they are expected to don amidst the changing socio-judicial scenario. This article makes an attempt to review the amendments which have come to circumscribe the scope of revisional jurisdiction of the High Courts in India and to examine as to whether the objectives underlying these amendments have been achieved. The article further attempts to identify the loop-hole required to be plugged so as at to render effective, the objectives behind the amendments.