Benami Transactions (Prohibition) Act, 1988

The Supreme Court examined whether Section 4(1) of the Benami Transactions (Prohibition) Act, 1988 could be applied to suits, claims or actions that were filed before the Act came into force, seeking to enforce rights over benami‑held property. The petitioners argued that the proceedings, initiated under the law then i…

The heirs of Vrajlal J. Ganatra filed a suit seeking a declaration that they were the real owners of a property despite a sale deed showing Parshottam S. Shah as the vendee, alleging the deed was a security for a loan and that the land would be reconveyed upon repayment. The trial court dismissed the suit for lack of p…

The Bangalore Municipal Corporation sold a residential property, originally leased to S, to S's son (the appellant) after S's death, with the sale price contributed by the appellant, S's husband and daughters (respondents). The respondents sued for a declaration of co‑ownership and an injunction, but the trial court di…

Dr. Ashutosh Ghosh purchased a house in 1935 in the name of his wife Suprovabala Ghosh by executing a power of attorney, which was later mutated in her name. After her death, the daughters, including Binapani Paul, obtained mutation of the property in their names and filed a suit for partition against their brother Ama…

Dharampal Dhall (deceased) filed a suit for restoration of possession, mesne profits and a permanent injunction over a house in Tagore Garden, claiming exclusive ownership based on a lease deed and subsequent name change. The defendants, his brother and sister, contended that the house was a family (joint) property acq…

Samitiri Devi (appellant) purchased a house in 1985 with her own funds, but the sale deed was executed in the names of her son and brother‑in‑law. They later sold half of the property to Sampuran Singh (respondent No.1) on 13‑April‑1987 without her consent, despite a notice she had posted on 8‑April‑1987 informing him …

Surendra Kerdile, the maternal uncle, gave his nephew Sanjay a power of attorney to sell a flat. Two sale agreements were executed, one for Rs 2,30,000 on 03‑07‑1989 and a later one for Rs 1,30,000 on 30‑11‑1989. Surendra advanced Rs 80,000 to Sanjay for business expansion; Sanjay issued post‑dated cheques which were l…

Smt. Rebati Devi (deceased) filed a suit for possession of a property against her son Ram Dutt Gupta, who claimed the property was purchased by her husband in her name, i.e., a benami transaction. The trial court held the plaintiff was not a benamidar, but the appellate court reversed that decision and the High Court a…

Padmini Chandrasekharan filed a suit claiming sole ownership of a house in Gandhi Nagar, Madras, and sought an injunction against R. Rajagopal Reddy. The dispute centered on whether the second defendant, Venugopal Reddy, was a benamidar for Rajagopal Reddy under the Benami Transactions (Prohibition) Act, 1988, and whet…

The petition challenged a Kerala High Court judgment that had set aside earlier findings that the petitioner, P.V. Sankara Kurup, was merely an agent and holder of a power of attorney for the respondent, Leelavathy Nambiar, and had purchased a Thavazhy property in his own name using the respondent’s funds. The central …

The complainant, a government teacher, alleged that the accused induced him to invest in benami land deals and later failed to deliver the promised plots and profits, leading him to file both a civil suit and a criminal FIR. The accused sought quashing of the FIR and charge sheet, arguing that the dispute was purely ci…

The dispute concerned the ownership of a house (Survey No. 251/2) in Anjuna, Goa, which the respondents claimed was a permanent grant to their father Vassudev Govekar. The appellants, relatives of the deceased owner, argued that the property actually belonged to their grandfather Jagannath Govekar and had erected a new…

The respondent, Prem Behari Khare, sued to be declared the sole owner of a suit house, alleging the appellant, Mithilesh Kumar, held the property benami. Trial and appellate courts upheld the respondent's claim, finding the house purchased by the respondent and held benami in the appellant's name. While the appeal was …

The plaintiffs, residing abroad, entrusted their relatives (defendants 1 and 2) to purchase immovable property in Hyderabad in the name of plaintiff No.2. When the plaintiffs discovered in 1999 that the property had been transferred to other relatives (defendants 3 and 4), they issued legal notices and filed two suits …

The suit for possession was filed by Dharam Pal (Respondent No.1) asserting ownership of two properties. The defendants, Vijay Kumar & Anr., contended that the properties were bought benami in Dharam Pal's name and that Section 4 of the Benami Transactions (Prohibition) Act, 1988 barred their defence. The trial court, …

The Supreme Court examined a dispute over a property in Purulia that had been purchased by Jagannath Joshi with his funds but registered in his wife Moni Debi's name. The Court held that such a purchase, made for the wife's security, is a benami transaction where the wife is the real owner. The plaintiff's claim that h…

The father purchased a house in 1970 in the name of his minor daughter and later the daughter filed a suit in 1984 for declaration of title and possession. The father pleaded that the purchase was a benami transaction and that he was the real owner, a defence taken in his written statement before the Benami Transaction…

Smt. P. Leelavathi filed a partition suit claiming a one‑fourth share in the properties of her late father, alleging that the properties were purchased by her father but held in the names of her brothers, making them benami transactions. The trial court dismissed the suit, holding the properties were self‑acquired by t…

The plaintiff claimed ownership of agricultural land purchased through four sale deeds in which the defendants were named only as benamidar, alleging the defendants held the property benami. The trial court dismissed the suit, but the first appellate court reversed the decision, and the High Court upheld the dismissal …

The Supreme Court examined an appeal by the family of the late Harshad Mehta challenging the Special Court's order to sell nine residential flats that had been attached under the Special Court (Trial of Offences Relating to Transactions in Securities) Act, 1992. The appellants argued that Section 4(1) of the Act, which…

The father of the respondents purchased land as the shebait of the deity Sri Sri Durgamata Thakurani and later sold it to the appellants. The appellants sought to enforce the sale, while the respondents claimed the land was a debutter (charitable endowment) and that the shebait could not validly sell it. The trial cour…

The case concerns the ownership of Rs. 50 crore 9% tax‑free bonds (the "suit bonds") issued by Nuclear Power Corporation Ltd. (NPCL). Andhra Bank Financial Services Ltd. (ABFSL) sold the bonds to Standard Chartered Bank (SCB) on 26‑27 February 1992, and SCB paid consideration and received a Banker's Receipt. Canbank Mu…

Canbank Financial Services Ltd., a subsidiary of Canara Bank, purchased CANCIGO units worth Rs 33 crore from a stock broker (Respondent 2) who had applied for the units through two other banks (Respondents 3 and 4) that held the certificates in their names but transferred possession to the broker. The Special Court hel…

The appellants' mother filed a suit for perpetual injunction against Dr. Shanti Mathur to prevent alienation of a family property, later filing suits for partition and for a declaration that Dr. Mathur was a benamidar and the property belonged to the joint family. An application was made to amend the plaint to allege t…

The husband, Nand Kishore Mehra, filed a suit in the Delhi High Court seeking relief concerning properties he alleged were purchased benami in his wife Sushila Mehra's name. The wife moved to have the plaint rejected on the ground that the suit was barred by Section 4 of the Benami Transactions (Prohibition) Act, 1988.…

The petitioner, Santosh Devi, filed a suit in 2012 seeking cancellation of a sale deed and related mutation, alleging that the deed was obtained through fraud. The trial court dismissed the suit on the ground of limitation, a decision affirmed by the first appellate court and the High Court. The petitioner contended th…