Rajendra Thacker, who has filed a public interest litigation against SEBI's ban on sale of unit-linked insurance plans (ULIP) by insurance companies, urged the Bombay High Court on Thursday that the PIL should not be transferred to the apex court.

In a case listed prior to the PIL, the division bench of acting Chief Justice JN Patel and Justice SC Dharmadhikari heard an application seeking CBI inquiry into a Jharkhand scam and there was no opposition from the Union government, said petitioner's counsel Sumedha Rao.

"Then, why can't our PIL be heard before this court when the regulator as well as the insurance companies are in Mumbai?" she argued.

However, Justice Patel has said "not before me", which means that he will not hear the case himself. However, being the acting Chief Justice, he may assign another judge to hear the petitioner's plea, said Ms Rao.