Authority: Court No.13, Commercial Division, Alipore
Order Date: 25 September 2026
Case Overview
- Parties: Appellants – Adarsh Kumar Agarwalla & Anr.; Respondent No.1 – Culinary Brands India Private Limited (and others).
- Original dispute: Termination of a Sub‑Franchise Agreement by the franchisor (Culinary Brands) after suit filing, raising questions on the scope of the termination clause.
- Jurisdiction issue: Respondent argued that the Commercial Court, South 24 Parganas at Alipore lacked territorial jurisdiction because the Sub‑Franchise contract stipulated exclusive jurisdiction of courts in New Delhi.
- Appellants, represented by Senior Advocate Suman Kumar Dutt, contested the exclusive‑jurisdiction clause and argued the termination letter was outside the contract’s scope.
- The Commercial Court had earlier passed a judgment and order on 29 June 2026 in Title Suit (Com) 04 of 2026, which the appellants appealed.
- An application under Order VII, Rule 10 of the CPC filed by the respondents remains pending.
- The appellate bench (Judges Rajasekhar Mantha and Anuj Singh) heard counsel for both sides, including senior advocates for appellants and respondents.
Final Outcome
- The appellate court directed that the suit be expedited and that the Commercial Court at Alipore dispose of it as quickly as possible.
- Any pending injunction application, if filed, shall be disposed of at the earliest by the trial court.
- A.O. (COM) 30 of 2026 is hereby stood disposed of.
- Consequently, the connected application CAN 1 of 2026 also stands disposed of.
- No order as to costs was made.
- All parties are directed to act on a server copy of this order downloaded from the official website of the Court.
Topics: Franchise Dispute, Jurisdiction Clause