The Specific Relief Act, 1963
An Act to define and amend the law relating to certain kinds of specific relief.
Administered by. Ministry of Law and Justice, Legislative Department · Other Acts of 1963
Preamble
THE SPECIFIC RELIEF ACT, 1963
ACT NO. 47 OF 1963
[13th December, 1963.] An Act to define and amend the law relating to certain kinds of specific relief.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Fourteenth Year of the Republic of India as follow:--
What this Act covers
Summary of Specific Relief Act, 1963
Scope and Application
• Title, Extent, and Commencement: The Specific Relief Act, 1963, applies to the whole of India (with historical exceptions now omitted).
• Purpose: To define and amend the law relating to certain kinds of specific relief.
Key Provisions Summary
• Definitions: Includes "obligation", "settlement", "trust", "trustee", with other terms defined by reference to the Indian Contract Act, 1872.
• Savings: Does not deprive any person of relief other than specific performance or affect the Indian Registration Act, 1908.
• Specific Relief Limitation: Granted only for enforcing individual civil rights, not penal laws.
2. Specific Relief
• Chapter I: Recovering Possession of Property
• Sections 5-8: Provisions for recovery of specific immovable and movable property, including liability of persons in possession not as owners.
• Chapter II: Specific Performance of Contracts
• Sections 9-19: Defences, contracts that can/cannot be specifically enforced, who may obtain specific performance, personal bars, and more.
Sections
Type to filter. 48 sections.
- 1Short title, extent and commencement
- 2Definitions
- 3Savings
- 4Specific relief to be granted only for enforcing individual civil rights and not for enforcing penal laws
- 5Recovery of specific immovable property
- 6Suit by person dispossessed of immovable property
- 7Recovery of specific movable property
- 8Liability of person in possession, not as owner, to deliver to persons entitled to immediate possession
- 9Defences respecting suits for relief based on contract
- 10Cases in which specific performance of contract enforceable
- 11Cases in which specific performance of contracts connected with trusts enforceable
- 12Specific performance of part of contract
- 13Rights of purchaser or lessee against person with no title or imperfect title
- 14Contracts not specifically enforceable
- 14APower of court to engage experts
- 15Who may obtain specific performance
- 16Personal bars to relief
- 17Contract to sell or let property by one who has no title, not specifically enforceable
- 18Non-enforcement except with variation
- 19Relief against parties and persons claiming under them by subsequent title
- 20Substituted performance of contract
- 20ASpecial provisions for contract relating to infrastructure project
- 20BSpecial Courts
- 20CExpeditious disposal of suits
- 21Power to award compensation in certain cases
- 22Power to grant relief for possession, partition, refund of earnest money, etc
- 23Liquidation of damages not a bar to specific performance
- 24Bar of suit for compensation for breach after dismissal of suit for specific performance
- 25Application of preceding sections to certain awards and testamentary directions to execute settlements
- 26When instrument may be rectified
- 27When rescission may be adjudged or refused
- 28Rescission in certain circumstances of contracts for the sale or lease of immovable property, the specific performance of which has been decreed
- 29Alternative prayer for rescission in suit for specific performance
- 30Court may require parties rescinding to do equity
- 31When cancellation may be ordered
- 32What instruments may be partially cancelled
- 33Power to require benefit to be restored or compensation to be made when instrument is cancelled or is successfully resisted as being void or voidable
- 34Discretion of court as to declaration of status or right
- 35Effect of declaration
- 36Preventive relief how granted
- 37Temporary and perpetual injunctions
- 38Perpetual injunction when granted
- 39Mandatory injunctions
- 40Damages in lieu of, or in addition to, injunction
- 41Injunction when refused
- 42Injunction to perform negative agreement
- 43Repealed
- 44Repealed
Schedules
This Act has 1 schedule. A schedule is published as a document of its own; the text is reproduced on its page where it has been read, and the document is mirrored here either way.
- THE SCHEDULE418 words
Amending Acts
1 Act amending this enactment, passed by Parliament of India. The text above is the consolidated text as published.
- The Specific Relief (Amendment) Act, 201847 of 2018
Rules made under this Act
2 sets of Rules. India Code publishes Rules as a record and a document rather than as text, so these are indexed here and not reproduced. All Rules.
- to designating the special courts under the Specific Relief Act 19632021
- The Specific Relief Act Notification2019
Related Acts
- The Administrators-General Act, 196364 sections
- The Limitation Act, 196332 sections
- The Advocates Act, 196185 sections
- The Goa, Daman and Diu (Extension of the Code of Civil Procedure and the Arbitration Act) Act, 19657 sections
- The Union Territories (Stamp and Court-fees Laws) Act, 19616 sections
- The Union Territories (Direct Election to the House of the People) Act, 19656 sections
- The Delhi High Court Act, 196622 sections
- The Parliament (Prevention of Disqualification) Act, 19595 sections
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. Every one of the 48 sections of this Act has its own page. This page is not a substitute for legal advice.