General power to amend
Section 153 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 deals with general power to amend. The Court may at any time, and on such terms as to costs or otherwise as it may think fit, amend any defect or error in any proceeding in a suit ; The Act came into force on 01 Jan 1909.
The Court may at any time, and on such terms as to costs or otherwise as it may think fit, amend any defect or error in any proceeding in a suit ; and all necessary amendments shall be made for the purpose of determining the real question or issue raised by or depending on such proceeding.
Section 153, The Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (Act 5 of 1908).
Related judgements & precedents
These are some judgments that construed this section, and hold precedence value. They hold authority on how to read, interpret and use this section.
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Pankajbhai Rameshbhai Zalavadiya vs Jethabhai Kalabhai Zalavadiya (deceased) through Lrs
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
When a defendant dies prior to the filing of a suit, the legal representatives of such deceased defendant can be impleaded under Order 1 Rule 10 CPC read with Section 151 CPC at any stage of the proceedings, even if an earlier application under Order 22 Rule 4 CPC was dismissed as not maintainable, provided the suit was instituted through a bona fide mistake and the presence of legal representatives is necessary for effective adjudication of the suit. The dismissal of the Order 22 Rule 4 application on grounds of non-maintainability does not operate as res judicata against a subsequent Order 1 Rule 10 application because the two provisions serve different purposes and the first application was not decided on merits. The impleadment shall be subject to the law of limitation as contemplated under Section 21 of the Limitation Act, 1963, to be decided during trial.
On this section: Grants general power to amend defects or errors in proceedings. Applied to support correction of the error in not arraying legal representatives at the time of filing.
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P. Sarala Devi v. S. Suryana Narayana
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
Final Order order-1.pdf 2016-02-15. CRP 3953 of 2015. M. Seetharama Murti J. DATE-CHECK flagged 2015-08-18 / 2015-05-05 (trial IA and decree dates; false positive); the PDF is the named 15 Feb 2016 Final Order isolating CPC 153 general power to amend: a typographical door-number error in the plaint/decree can be corrected under 153 even at execution when identity of the property is unchanged. Map cpc 153 cited only.
On this section: CPC 153 lets the Court correct a genuine typographical defect in a plaint or decree even at execution, if identity of the property is unchanged (P. Sarala Devi).
The holding above is the ratio decidendi as extracted from the judgment by eCourts India, reproduced unaltered — it is a rendering of the court's reasoning, not a substitute for its words. Read the order itself before relying on it.
Judgments citing this section
These may be obiter dicta or a precedent, for you to study. These are the judgments where this section is quoted.
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… There shall be no order as to costs. 28.10.2022 Index : Yes/No Speaking/Non-speaking order mk Application No.343 of 2023 in C.S. (Comm.Div.) No.70 of 2021 M.SUNDAR,J., This order will now dispose of the captioned application which has been taken out inter-alia under Section 153 of the 'The Code of Civil Procedure, 1908' (hereinafter 'CPC' for brevity). 2. Ms.M.Meenatchi, learned counsel representing Mr.P.Raghu, counsel on record for the two applicants (defendants 1 and 4 in the main suit) is before this Court. To be noted, the name of Mr.R.John Sathyan …
Questions about Section 153
What have the courts held on Section 153 of the Code of Civil Procedure?
Pankajbhai Rameshbhai Zalavadiya vs Jethabhai Kalabhai Zalavadiya (deceased) through Lrs (03 Oct 2017) is the leading judgment on this section among those set out below: Grants general power to amend defects or errors in proceedings. Applied to support correction of the error in not arraying legal representatives at the time of filing. Another 1 judgment on this section is set out below, 1 of them from the Supreme Court. They run from 2016 to 2017.
How do I find court cases under Section 153 of the Code of Civil Procedure?
In judgments and charge sheets this section is written several ways, and each form finds a different set of orders. These search the full text of every order eCourtsIndia holds, best matches first: CPC 153, section 153 CPC, section 153 of the Code of Civil Procedure. People searching for it also type cpc 153 b. Each opens the full list of orders on eCourtsIndia, where it can be narrowed by court, year and outcome. 2 reported judgments on this section are set out on this page, beginning with Pankajbhai Rameshbhai Zalavadiya vs Jethabhai Kalabhai Zalavadiya (deceased) through Lrs (03 Oct 2017).
When did Section 153 of the Code of Civil Procedure come into force?
Section 153 of the Code of Civil Procedure, cited as CPC 153, came into force on 01 Jan 1909, having been enacted on 21 Mar 1908. It is in force as at the date shown on this page.
Other sections of this Act
- 115. Revision2475 words
- 60. Property liable to attachment and sale in execution of decree1869 words
- 2. Definitions890 words
- 9. Courts to try all civil suits unless barred714 words
- 42. Powers of Court in executing transferred decree653 words
- 92. Public charities610 words
Source and method. Compiled from the enactments of Parliament and of the State legislatures as published on India Code, and republished together with commentary and other original matter under section 52(1)(q)(ii) of the Copyright Act, 1957. Structured, cross-referenced and maintained by eCourtsIndia. Text as in force on 15 Oct 2026. This page is not a substitute for legal advice.