Jaipur: In a significant ruling safeguarding the rights of homeuyers, the Rajasthan High Court has held that a genuine claim cannot be dismissed merely because it has been filed before the wrong forum.
The judgment was delivered by a division bench of Justice Arun Monga and Justice Sandeep Taneja, which modified a Commercial Court order rejecting a homebuyer’s suit and directed that the plaint be returned, enabling the litigant to pursue her remedy before the Rajasthan Real Estate Regulatory Authority (RERA).
The dispute arose after the appellant booked a 4-BHK apartment in the respondent’s residential project for ₹1.45 crore and alleged that despite paying the entire sale consideration, the developer neither handed over possession nor executed the sale deed.
During the proceedings, the developer objected that the dispute fell within the jurisdiction of RERA under the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016. While the homebuyer sought return of the plaint under Order VII Rule 10 CPC to pursue her remedies before RERA, the Commercial Court instead rejected the suit under Order VII Rule 11 CPC.
Allowing the appeal, the High Court held that the Commercial Court had failed to appreciate the distinction between return and rejection of a plaint. The bench observed that where the objection relates only to the forum having jurisdiction, and not to the validity of the claim itself, the proper course is to return the plaint rather than dismiss the suit.
Accordingly, the High Court modified the impugned order, directed the return of the plaint with refund of the court fee, and granted the appellant liberty to approach RERA, Jaipur. The ruling underscores that a genuine claim cannot be defeated merely because it was filed before the wrong forum.