Every person has a right to approach courts to seek
justice. There are various laws enacted by the central and State governments
regulating the rights of citizens and procedure of juridical proceedings. Law
of limitation is a restrictive law, where the rights of the persons to approach
courts are regulated, with the time factor being important. A person has to approach the court within
certain prescribed period if not his right to seek Justice through courts is
lost. Law of limitation is both adjective and substantive law. Though superficially
law of limitation seems to curtail the rights of the citizen, it is
actually proactive, forcing to
approach the court within the limitation period. If not people would have
waited, might have dug out the graves, to open age old litigations and courts
would have flooded with cases. One may imagine the situation in the country in
the absence of limitation law, as even now there is backlog of cases in all the
courts.
The law of
limitation which was enacted in 1908, had certain inherent defects and
shortcomings, which were exposed by various judicial verdicts. The act was
revised simplified, came into force from
1st January 1964. The act contains 32 sections and
137 articles; where as the act of 1908 had 30 sections and 183 articles.
The sections deal with the general
principles applicable to the extension of time, whether by reason of
disability, acknowledgement and part payment. The sections are divided into
five parts; part 1 is preliminary, part IInd deals with limitation of suits, appeals and
applications, part IIIrd deals with computation of period of limitation,
part IVth deals with acquisition of ownership by possessions and part Vth deals
with saving provisions. Out of 183 articles, articles from 1 to 149 deal with
suits, articles 150-157 deal with appeals, articles 158 to 183 relate to
applications. The revised Act has some salient changes; the most important being the maximum period of
limitation is 30 years, which is available to three kinds of suits.
1. Suits by mortgagors for the redemption of recovery of possession of
immovable property.
2. Suits by mortgagee for foreclosure
3. Suits by or on behalf of Central government
or State government including state of Jammu and Kashmir.
The old Limitation
Act has prescribed 60 years as limitation
period to suits to redeem or recovery possession of immovable property
mortgaged.
The second longest
period of limitation is 12 years,
prescribed for various kinds of suits relating to immovable property trusts and endowments.
The limitation period for contracts, accounts, declaratory suits, suits
relating to decrees, instruments and suits relating to movable property is
three years. The limitation period varying from one to three years is
prescribed for suits relating to torts and miscellaneous suits and also in
respect of suits for which no specific period of limitation is provided in
the schedule to the Act. A minimum limitation period of 10 days is
prescribed for applications for leave to appear and contest a suit under
summary procedure from the date of summons.
We shall discuss
some important sections. Importantly, the Limitation Act considers all the
instruments be made with reference to Gregorian calendar, where the years are
computed from the date of the birth of Christ which is widely used. The present
year is 2004 according to Gregorian calendar.
Another
Important provision is legal disability.
The person who is entitled to file a
suit may be suffering from legal disability at the time from which the limitation
period starts, such as minority, insanity etc.
In case of such persons, the limitation period starts after the legal
disability is cured. In case of the legal disability continues until the death,
his legal heirs may institute the suit, within the same limitation period after
the death. In case the person under legal disability dies after the disability
is cured but within the limitation period allowed, his legal representative may
institute the suit within the same period, after the death as otherwise would
have been available to the person had
he not died. To be more clear we shall study an illustration. Mr. A has lent some amount to B on the security of demand pro note. The limitation period is three from the date
of pro note. But Mr. A was suffering some legal disability during the period of
three years and recovers in the fourth year. The limitation period of three
years starts from the fourth year. But A will nor institute any suit and dies
at the end of fifth year. Mr. A had a balance period of limitation of one
year. So his legal representative may
institute a suit within one year after the death of A.
The limitation
period may expire on a day, when the court is closed. In such cases the suit
may be filed on the date when court re-opens. Thus the Court holidays are
excluded while computing the limitation period.
If a
person could satisfy the court, that he had sufficient reasons for not
preferring an appeal during the limitation period, the court may admit the
appeal, even after the expiry of limitation period.
Any
suit, appeal application made after the prescribed period is liable to be
dismissed except where specific provisions are made. The dates of instituting
suits, preferring appeals or making applications will be considered as follows.
A
suit is said to be instituted when the plaint is presented to the properofficer.
In
case of a pauper when his application for leave to sue as pauper is made.
In case of a claim against a
company, which is being wound up by the court, when the claimant sends
his claim to the official liquidator.
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