M.C. Athambawa vs MCA. Azeez – CA TRANSFER APPLICATION NO: 16/2011-2013

The case between M.C. Athambawa and M.C.A. Azeez involved the question of whether the Court of Appeal possessed jurisdiction to transfer an appellate case—specifically, an appeal from the District Court, pending before the Eastern Provincial Civil Appellate High Court at Kalmunai—to another Appellate High Court or, alternatively, to hear and determine the appeal itself. It was held that there exists no statutory authority permitting the Court of Appeal to transfer an appeal from one Provincial High Court to another, nor did the statutory provisions authorize the Court of Appeal to intervene in such a matter post-appeal to the High Court. The holding reaffirmed the principle that the Court of Appeal’s jurisdiction to transfer is confined to original courts as stipulated by Section 46 of the