Tis Hazari Court —
Central & West Delhi Sessions

Tis Hazari Court Complex serves the Central and West Delhi Districts. The Central District covers police station areas including Daryaganj, Kashmiri Gate, Kotwali, Lahori Gate, Chandni Chowk, Hauz Qazi, and Civil Lines. The West District covers Karol Bagh, Patel Nagar, Punjabi Bagh, Rajouri Garden, Tilak Nagar, Subhash Nagar, Moti Nagar, and surrounding areas. Territorial jurisdiction is determined under Section 197 BNSS by the place where the offence was committed; for matters that span multiple jurisdictions, the appropriate forum is determined by the principles in Sections 197 to 207 BNSS.

Tis Hazari Court Complex is at Tis Hazari, Delhi 110054 — on the Tis Hazari Road, near Tis Hazari Metro Station. Established in 1958, it is one of the oldest court complexes in Delhi and houses the District Sessions Court for the Central and West Delhi Districts, the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Court, Metropolitan Magistrate Courts, Civil Judge Courts, and various special courts. The complex is one of the largest district court complexes in Asia by daily case volume.

Anticipatory bail under Section 482 BNSS for matters within the Central or West Delhi District territorial jurisdiction is filed before the Sessions Judge or Additional Sessions Judge at Tis Hazari. The application must establish reasonable apprehension of arrest based on tangible material — typically an FIR, a Section 179 BNSS notice, or other documentary basis. The Sushila Aggarwal Constitution Bench framework on duration, the Mhetre parameters on factors, and the Sibbia foundational principles continue to operate. Drafting and filing typically takes 12 to 24 hours; mentioning slips for urgent same-day or next-day listing are entertained for cases with imminent apprehension.

EOW (Economic Offences Wing) Delhi Police matters originating from Central and West Delhi — typically cheating, criminal breach of trust, and forgery complaints under BNS Sections 318, 316, and 336 — are tried at Tis Hazari. The matters often arise from commercial disputes between traders, builder-buyer disputes, employer-employee allegations of misappropriation, and bank-customer disputes that have been criminalised. Defence strategy frequently engages the Indian Oil v. NEPC framework — many EOW matters at Tis Hazari are essentially civil disputes dressed up as criminal complaints, and quashing under Section 528 BNSS at the Delhi High Court is a viable route.

Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act 1881 cheque-bounce complaints within Central and West Delhi territorial jurisdiction are filed before the Magistrate of First Class at Tis Hazari. Territorial jurisdiction follows the principles in Bhaskaran v. Sankaran (1999) 7 SCC 510 and the subsequent Dashrath Rupsingh Rathod v. State of Maharashtra (2014) 9 SCC 129 framework — typically the place where the cheque was dishonoured by the drawee bank. The 2015 amendment (Section 142(2) NI Act) consolidated jurisdiction at the place of the payee's bank where the cheque was deposited. Magistrate trials under Section 138 follow summary procedure under Sections 261 to 265 BNSS.

Sessions-triable offences (those punishable with imprisonment over seven years, or specified in the BNSS First Schedule) are heard by the Sessions Judge at Tis Hazari. Bail is governed by Section 480 BNSS for non-bailable offences. The Antil framework applies — Category A (ordinary offences) liberality; Category B (economic offences) balanced approach; Category C (life / death) strict standard. For matters at the Magistrate court (Section 480 BNSS application before Magistrate or trial-court route), the framework is the same. Where the trial court refuses, the Section 483 BNSS route to the Delhi High Court is available.

Yes. The firm regularly appears at Tis Hazari for sessions-court bail and trial defence, anticipatory bail under Section 482 BNSS, EOW matters within Central and West Delhi, Section 138 NI Act prosecutions, and matters before the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate and Metropolitan Magistrates. Engagement begins with a confidential consultation establishing the matter coordinates, the appropriate forum and procedure, and the timeline. Senior Partner Advocate Subodh Bajpai (LLM, MBA — XLRI Jamshedpur) leads the criminal practice. Contact +91 84008 60008 (mark URGENT for arrest matters) or legal@unifiedchambers.com.