Rights of depositories and beneficial owner
Section 10 of the Depositories Act, 1996 deals with rights of depositories and beneficial owner. Notwithstanding anything contained in any other law for the time being in force, a depository shall be deemed to be the registered owner for the purposes of effecting transfer of ownership of security on behalf of a beneficial owner. The Act came into force on 20 Sep 1995.
(1) Notwithstanding anything contained in any other law for the time being in force, a depository shall be deemed to be the registered owner for the purposes of effecting transfer of ownership of security on behalf of a beneficial owner.
(2) Save as otherwise provided in sub-section (1), the depository as a registered owner shall not have any voting rights or any other rights in respect of securities held by it.
(3) The beneficial owner shall be entitled to all the rights and benefits and be subjected to all the liabilities in respect of his securities held by a depository.
Section 10, The Depositories Act, 1996 (Act 22 of 1996).
Cross-references
Extracted from the operative text of the enactments themselves. Every destination below exists in our corpus.
Referred to by 1
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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PTC India Financial Services Ltd. v. Venkateswarlu Kari
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
On pledge of dematerialised shares, NCLT/NCLAT treated the pawnee's recording as 'beneficial owner' under Reg.58(8) as extinguishing the pledge debt. The Supreme Court held that Depositories Act s.10 (non obstante) only deems the depository the registered owner so that transfers can be effected on behalf of the beneficial owner; it does not rewrite Contract Act pledge. Mere registration of the pawnee as beneficial owner is a precondition to sale, not 'actual sale'; the pawnor's s.177 redemption right continues until sale to a third party. DATE-VERIFIED: index Judgement order-12.pdf 2022-05-12; body ends NEW DELHI; MAY 12, 2022 (portal WRONG DOCUMENT false-positive citing 2014/2017 factual dates).
On this section: s.10's registered-owner / beneficial-owner split governs demat transfer mechanics and does not itself convert a pledge into an absolute transfer when the pawnee is recorded as BO.
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.
Questions about Section 10
What have the courts held on Section 10 of the Depositories Act?
PTC India Financial Services Ltd. v. Venkateswarlu Kari (12 May 2022) is the leading judgment on this section among those set out below: s.10's registered-owner / beneficial-owner split governs demat transfer mechanics and does not itself convert a pledge into an absolute transfer when the pawnee is recorded as BO.
How do I find court cases under Section 10 of the Depositories Act?
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: Depositories Act 1996 10, section 10 Depositories Act 1996, section 10 of the Depositories Act. Each opens the full list of orders on eCourtsIndia, where it can be narrowed by court, year and outcome. 1 reported judgment on this section is set out on this page, beginning with PTC India Financial Services Ltd. v. Venkateswarlu Kari (12 May 2022).
What should I read with Section 10 of the Depositories Act, and has it changed?
1 other provision in this corpus refers back to it.
When did Section 10 of the Depositories Act come into force?
Section 10 of the Depositories Act, cited as Depositories Act 1996 10, came into force on 20 Sep 1995, having been enacted on 10 Aug 1996. It is in force as at the date shown on this page.
Other sections of this Act
- 19-IB. Recovery of amounts590 words
- 19-IC. Continuance of proceedings382 words
- 26. Power of depositories to make bye-laws377 words
- 2. Definitions349 words
- 19H. Power to adjudicate314 words
- 23A. Appeal to Securities Appellate Tribunal284 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.