Judgment :- (1) This Court ordered notice before admission on 12.1.2010 and granted interim stay of all further proceedings in CC No.97/2004 on the file of Judicial Magistrate of First Class, Satyavedu, pending disposal of the transfer criminal petition. (2) Heard Sri T.C. Krishnan, the learned Counsel representing the petitioner, Sri R. Chandra Reddy, the learned Counsel representing respondents 1 to 5, 7 and 8 and the learned Additional Public Prosecutor representing R.9. (3) The transfer criminal petition is filed under Section 407 of the Criminal Procedure Code (hereinafter, in short, referred to as 'the Code' for the purpose of convenience) praying for withdrawal of CC No.97/2004 on the file of the Judicial Magistrate of First Class, Satyavedu, be transferred to the file of any Additional Judicial Magistrate of First Class, Tirupati, in the interest of justice and pass such other suitable orders. (4) Several facts had been narrated in detail in the affidavit filed in support of the transfer criminal petition at Paras 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 of the affidavit. (5) Section 407 of the Code deals with power of High Court to transfer cases and appeals. Section 408 of the Code deals with power of Sessions Judge to transfer cases and appeals. Section 408 of the Code reads as hereunder :- "(1) Whenever it is made to appear to a Sessions Judge that an order under this sub-section is expedient for the ends of justice, he may order that any particular case be transferred from one Criminal Court to another Criminal Court in his sessions division. (2) The Sessions Judge may act either on the report of the lower Court, or on the application of a party interested, or on his own initiative.
(2) The Sessions Judge may act either on the report of the lower Court, or on the application of a party interested, or on his own initiative. (3) The provisions of sub-sections (3), (4), (5), (6), (7) and (9) of Section 407 shall apply in relation to an application to the Sessions Judge for an order under subsection (1) as they apply in relation to an application to the High Court for an order under sub-section (1) of Section 407, except that sub-section (7) of that section shall so apply as if for the words "one thousand rupees" occurring therein, the words "two hundred and fifty rupees" were substituted." Sub-section (2) of Section 407 of the Code reads as hereunder:- "The High Court may act either on the report of the lower Court, or on the application of a party interested, or on its own initiative : Provided that no application shall lie to the High Court for transferring a case from one Criminal Court to another Criminal Court in the same sessions division, unless an application for such transfer has been made to the Sessions Judge and rejected by him." (6) It is not in controversy that both these Courts fall within the same sessions division and it is also not in serious controversy that the petitioner had not approached the concerned Sessions Judge in this regard but straight away approached this Court by filing the present transfer criminal petition. In the light of the clear language of the proviso to sub-section (2) of Section 407 of the Code specified above, the petitioner cannot maintain the present Transfer Criminal Petition straight away before this Court. Hence, liberty is given to the petitioner to make appropriate application in this regard. (7) Accordingly, transfer criminal petition is disposed of.