Definition
Supervisory power.
Power to correct jurisdictional errors.
Statutory Definition
Section 115 CPC.
Etymology & Origin
From 'revise' (to look at again, to correct). A mechanism for higher courts to oversee and correct the jurisdictional boundaries of lower courts.
Full Legal Analysis
A Revision Petition is a legal remedy whereby a High Court exercises its supervisory jurisdiction to correct glaring errors made by subordinate civil courts. It is not an appeal. A revision can only be filed against court orders for which the law does not provide an avenue for appeal (non-appealable orders).
The scope of a revision is extremely narrow. The High Court will not interfere just because the lower judge made a mistake in law or fact. It will only interfere if the lower court committed a 'jurisdictional error'.
A 1999 amendment heavily restricted this power. Now, a revision against an interim order (like rejecting an amendment to a plaint) is only allowed if, had the order been made in favor of the party applying for revision, it would have completely disposed of the suit.
The Supreme Court upheld the strict 1999 amendment to Section 115, confirming that revisions cannot be used to challenge routine interim procedural orders, thereby speeding up civil trials.
Advocates file Civil Revision Petitions (CRP) most commonly when a lower court wrongly dismisses an application to reject a plaint under Order VII Rule 11, as reversing that order would immediately kill the lawsuit.
This Term in Indian Statutes
Code of Civil Procedure, 1908, 1908
"Revision. The High Court may call for the record of any case... in which no appeal lies..."
The supervisory tool to keep lower courts strictly within their legal boundaries.
