1 CGHC010260742026 2026:CGHC:29661 NAFR HIGH COURT OF CHHATTISGARH AT BILASPUR TPCR No. 15 of 2026 Smt. Nikita Jain D/o Ashok Jain Aged About 37 Years W/o Akhilesh Kumar Dankhade, R/o Ward No. 12, Greenshop Dafai, Haldibadi, Chirmiri, Distt. Manendragarh Chirmiri Bharatpur, Chhattisgarh. ... Petitioner(s) versus Smt. Kamini Kushwaha D/o Kamlesh Kushwaha R/o C/o Deepak Gupta, Nagar Balrampur, Ward No. 6, Thana And Tahsil Balrampur, Distt. Balrampur Ramanujganj, Chhattisgarh, At Present R/o Ambikapur, (Near Pratappur Naka Mission Hospital), Thana And Tahsil Ambikapur, Distt. Surguja, Chhattisgarh. ... Respondent(s) For Petitioner(s) : Mr. Parag Kotecha, Advocate. For Respondent(s) : None. Hon'ble Shri Ramesh Sinha, Chief Justice Order on Board 14/07/2026 1. The present petition under Section 447 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (for short, “BNSS”) seeks transfer of Case No.16/2026 (Kamini Kushwaha vs. Smt. Nikita Jain) pending before AKHILESH KUMAR DEWANGAN Digitally signed by AKHILESH KUMAR DEWANGAN 2 the Court of the Judicial Magistrate First Class, Balrampur, District – Balrampur-Ramanujganj (C.G.) to the Court of the Judicial Magistrate First Class, Chirimiri, District Manendragarh-Chirimiri- Bharatpur (C.G.), or, in any alternative, to the Judicial Magistrate First Class, Baikunthpur. 2. Brief facts necessary for the case are that the respondent / complainant filed a complaint under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881, alleging that the applicant had borrowed a total sum of Rs.40,00,000/- and, towards repayment of the said liability, issued two cheques of Rs.20,00,000/- each, which were dishonoured upon presentation. Thereafter, the complaint was instituted, the applicant denied the allegations, and the learned trial Court proceeded with the case by framing notice/charge. The present transfer petition has been preferred on the ground that the applicant is residing at Baikunthpur with her husband and two minor children aged about five years and six months, respectively. It is contended that attending the proceedings at Balrampur on each date of hearing would cause considerable hardship to her, whereas transfer of the case to Chirmiri, or alternatively Baikunthpur, would not prejudice the respondent. Hence, the present petition. 3. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that the petitioner is residing at Chirmiri and has the custody of two minor children, aged about five years and six months, respectively and travelling to Balrampur on every date of hearing with two young children would cause her considerable hardship and inconvenience. He further 3 submits that the respondent is employed as a Management Trainee (Civil) with SECL and is posted at Pandupara Colliery, Baikunthpur, District Korea. Since Chirmiri is only about 22–23 kilometres from Baikunthpur, whereas Balrampur is approximately 300 kilometres away, transfer of the case to the Court of JMFC, Chirmiri, or alternatively JMFC, Baikunthpur, would not cause any prejudice to the respondent, neither of the parties is residing at Balrampur. He also submits that the applicant has prayed that, in the interest of justice and for the convenience of the parties, Case No. 16/2026 pending before the Judicial Magistrate First Class, Balrampur, be transferred to the Court of Judicial Magistrate First Class, Chirmiri, or, in the alternative, to the Court of Judicial Magistrate First Class, Baikunthpur. 4. I have heard learned counsel for the petitioner and perused the materials available on record. 5. Section 447 of the BNSS confers power upon the High Court to transfer any inquiry or trial where it appears that a fair and impartial inquiry or trial cannot be had in any Criminal Court subordinate to it, where some question of law of unusual difficulty is likely to arise, or where such transfer is otherwise expedient for the ends of justice or for the general convenience of the parties or witnesses. 6. In the present case, the petitioner has not alleged any circumstance giving rise to a reasonable apprehension that she would not receive a fair and impartial trial before the Court at Balrampur. No allegation of bias, prejudice or any other 4 circumstance affecting the administration of justice has been pleaded. The only ground urged is the inconvenience faced by the petitioner on account of the distance between her place of residence and the Court at Balrampur and the fact that she has to take care of two minor children. 7. It is well settled that the power of transfer is an extraordinary power and is to be exercised sparingly. The paramount consideration while deciding a transfer petition is whether the transfer is necessary to ensure a fair and impartial trial and to advance the ends of justice. Mere inconvenience or hardship to one of the parties, by itself, does not constitute a sufficient ground for transfer. The Hon'ble Supreme Court in Maneka Sanjay Gandhi v. Rani Jethmalani, (1979) 4 SCC 167, has categorically held that the assurance of a fair trial is the foremost consideration and that mere convenience or hypersensitivity of a party is not enough to justify transfer unless compelling circumstances affecting the administration of justice are established. 8. The proceedings under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act have been instituted before the Court having territorial jurisdiction in accordance with law. The petitioner has not questioned the jurisdiction of the said Court. Merely because the petitioner resides at Chirmiri and has to travel for attending the Court cannot, in the absence of any exceptional circumstance, be treated as a valid ground to transfer the proceedings. It is also 5 pertinent to note that criminal proceedings cannot ordinarily be transferred solely to suit the convenience of one party. While considering an application under Section 447 of the BNSS, the Court is required to balance the convenience of all concerned, including the complainant, witnesses and the administration of justice. No material has been placed on record to demonstrate that continuance of the proceedings before the Court at Balrampur, District -Balrampur-Ramanujganj (C.G.) would occasion any failure of justice or that transfer is otherwise indispensable in the interest of justice. 9. In view of the aforesaid facts and circumstances and applying the principles laid down by the Hon'ble Supreme Court in Maneka Sanjay Gandhi (supra), this Court finds no just or sufficient ground to transfer Case No.16/2026 from the Judicial Magistrate First Class, Balrampur, District – Balrampur-Ramanujganj (C.G.) to the Court of the Judicial Magistrate First Class, Chirimiri, District Manendragarh- Chirimiri-Bharatpur (C.G.). 10. Accordingly, the Transfer Petition stands dismissed. Sd/- (Ramesh Sinha) Chief Justice Akhil