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Explainer : What Is Order 7 Rule 11

CPC? When Can Plaint Be Rejected?
Paras Ahuja 29 May 2022 3:40 AM

The presentation of a plaint, i.e. the pleading of the plaintiff in a suit;

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marks the institution of a civil suit. The Civil Procedure Code, 1908,

provides for the remedy of rejection of plaint under Order VII Rule 11, on

certain speci�cally states grounds. Order VII Rule 11 provides:

"Court shall reject a plaint:

(a) where it does not disclose a cause of action;

(b) where the relief claimed is undervalued, and the plaintiff, on being

required by the court to correct the valuation within a time to be �xed by

the court, fails to do so;

Also Read - When Can A Citizen's Right To Travel Abroad Be

Restricted? Explained With Judgments

(c) where the relief claimed is properly valued, but the plaint is written

upon paper insu�ciently stamped, and the plaintiff, on being required by

the court to supply the requisite stamp paper within a time to be �xed by

the Court, fails to do so;

(d) where the suit appears from the statement in the plaint to be barred

by any law;

(e) where it is not �led in duplicate;

(f) where the plaintiff fails comply with the provision of Rule 9.

Also Read - Explained | UAPA Prosecution Sanction, Process and

Interpretations

Provided that the time �xed by the court for the correction of the

valuation or supplying of the requisite stamp papers shall not be

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extended unless the court, for reasons to be recorded, is satis�ed that

the plaintiff was prevented by any cause of an exceptional nature from

correcting the valuation or supplying the requisite stamp papers, as the

case may be within the time �xed by the court and that refusal to extend

such time would cause grave injustice to the plaintiff."

Also Read - Explained| Kerala Human Sacri�ce : Which States Have

Laws Against Superstitions & Black Magic?

1 Object

Rejection of plaint weeds about frivolous, vexatious and improper

plaints at the very outset, thus, saving judicial time and resources. It was

observed in the case of Azhar Hussain v. Rajiv Gandhi that the entire

purpose of conferment of such powers under O7 R 11 is to ensure that a

litigation, which is meaningless and bound to prove abortive is not

permitted to occupy the time of the courts, and exercise the mind of the

respondent. Such a remedy is necessary to put an end to the sham

litigation, so further judicial time is not wasted, as observed by the

Supreme Court in Hon'ble Supreme Court of India in the case of Dahiben

v. Arvindbhai Kalyanji Bhanusal.

Also Read - Explained | Nayanthara-Vignesh Shivan Controversy:

What Does Surrogacy (Regulation) Act Say?

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1 Grounds of Rejection of Plaint

Rule 11 provides for 6 grounds for rejection of plaint, as follows:

• Non-Disclosure of Cause of Action

Cause of action was de�ned in the case of Bloom Dekor Ltd. vs.

Subhash Himatlal Desai & Ors to mean "every fact, which, if traversed, it

would be necessary for the plaintiff to prove in order to support his right

to a judgment of the Court" The court observed in the case of Church Of

Christ Charitable Trust vs M/S. Ponniamman Educational Trust that

cause of action refers to a bundle of facts which it is necessary for the

plaintiff to prove in order to succeed in the suit." A plaint that doesn't

disclose a cause of action has no prospect of succeeding, it is therefore,

in the common interest of the parties and also judicial time, that such a

plaint be rejected Supreme Court in Raj Narain Sarin (dead) through

L.Rs. Vs. Lakshmi Devi r also observed that where the plaint does not

disclose a clear right to sue, it is liable for rejection.

More recently, in Colonel Shrawan Kumar Jaipuriyar @ Sarwan Kumar

Jaipuriyar v. Krishna Nandan Singh And Another, court had rejected the

plaint on the ground that it didn't disclose a clear right to sue.

• Plaint is under-valued

Under-valuation of the plaint would have the impact of circumvention

around the law on court fees and also the rules related to pecuniary

jurisdiction of the court

Herein, court is empowered to grant extra time to correct the error of

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under-valuation, and if the plaintiff doesn't correct even after that, then

even in such a situation, by virtue of the proviso to Rule 11, court may

further grant extra time in exceptional situations.

• Plaint is insu�ciently stamped

To ensure compliance with the mandate of Stamp Act, as well as to

secure the revenue interests of the state, this ground provides for

rejection in case plaint is insu�ciently stamped.

However, as in case of under-valued plaint, court may grant extension of

time here also under Rule 11(c) and the Proviso.

• Relief claimed is barred by law

In a case where the relied claimed is barred by law, the plaint shall be

rejected by the court. The most common example of the same is seen in

cases where the plaintiff without following the mandatory requirement

of 2-month prior notice under Section 80CPC [herein, a two month-prior

notice is to be given to the government before instituting suit against it],

is presented, the same is liable to be rejected. In 2022, the Supreme

Court in the case of M/S Frost International Limited v. M/S Milan

Developers And Builders (P) Limited & Anr observed that the plaint

which, in essence, sought the relief of injuncting the defendant from

instituting criminal prosecution against the plaintiff under Section 138,

Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881, is liable to be rejected on the ground

that such relief is barred by law under Section 41, Speci�c Relief Act,

1963.

• When plaint is not �led in duplicate

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Order IV Rule 1(1) requires that a plaint should be �led in duplicate. If

this requirement is not ful�lled, court has to reject the plaint.

• Non-Compliance with Rule 9

Rule 9 provides that the plaintiff shall endorse on the plaint, or annex

thereto, a list of the documents (if any) which he has produced along

with it; and, if the plaint is admitted, shall present, within such time as

may be �xed by the Court or extended by it from time to time, as many

copies on plain paper of the plaint as there are defendants, unless the

Court by reason of the length of the plaint or the number of the

defendants, or for any other su�cient reason, permits him to present a

like number of concise statements of the nature of the claim made, or of

the relief claimed in the suit, in which case he shall present such

statements. It further provides that the plaintiff shall, within the time

�xed by the Court or extended by it under sub-rule (1), pay the requisite

fee for the service of summons on the defendants.

In case this is not complied with, the plaint shall be rejected.

1 OVII R1: Mandatory power of the court, not a matter of discretion

The Supreme Court in its 2020 decision of Dahiben v. Arvindbhai

Kalyanji Bhanusali (Gajra)(D) Thru Lrs observed that the plaint "shall" be

rejected if any of the grounds speci�ed in clause (a) to (e) are made out.

If the Court �nds that the plaintiff does not disclose a cause of action, or

that the suit is barred by any law, the Court has no option, but to reject

the plaintiff." The provisions of Order VI Rule 11 are therefore not

discretionary, but mandatory. If the plaint attracts any of the clauses

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under Rule 11, the court cannot of its discretion choose to note reject it.

1 Basis of decision as to rejection of a plaint: Can Written Statement

be referred to?

In the case of Kamala & others v. KT Eshwara, the two judge bench of

the Supreme Court observed that the conclusion as to rejection of plaint

must be drawn from the averments made in the plaint. The bench

observed that that would be relevant for invoking clause (d) of Order 7

Rule 11 of the Code are the averments made in the plaint. For that

purpose, there cannot be any addition or subtraction. In Saleem Bhai v.

State of Maharashtra, the Supreme Court also observed that: "It is clear

that in order to consider Order 7 Rule 11, the court has to look into the

averments in the plaint and the same can be exercised by the trial court

at any stage of the suit. It is also clear that the averments in the written

statement are immaterial and it is the duty of the Court to scrutinize the

averments/pleas in the plaint. In other words, what needs to be looked

into in deciding such an application are the averments in the plaint. At

that stage, the pleas taken by the defendant in the written statement are

wholly irrelevant and the matter is to be decided only on the plaint

averments."

More recently, in the landmark decision of Srihari Hanumandas Totala v.

Hemant Vithal Kamat & Ors, the Supreme Court, while deciding the issue

of "res judicata as a ground of rejection of plaint" observed that to reject

a plaint on the ground that the suit is barred by any law, only the

averments in the plaint will have to be referred to and the defense made

by the defendant in the suit must not be considered while deciding the

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merits of the application.

Moreover, as held by the Supreme Court in its 2022 decision of

Biswanath Banik v. Sulanga Bose, the Court has to consider and read the

averments in the plaint as a whole. Laying reliance on the decision in

Ram Prakash Gupta v. Rajiv Kumar Gupta, it observed that rejection of a

plaint under Order VII Rule 11 by reading only few lines and passages of

the plaint and ignoring the other relevant parts of the plaint is

impermissible.

1 Rejection of Plaint and "Mixed Question of Law and Fact"

The major chunk of jurisprudence around Order VII Rule 11, revolves

around Rule 11(d), which states that plaint shall be rejected if it the relief

claimed is barred by law. Now in cases whether the determination of bar

of law is a 'mixed question of law and fact', the rejection of plaint is not

ordered by the court. The reason for the same is simple. Since a mixed

question of law and fact cannot be decided on the sole basis of a plaint,

and requires the court to consider evidence, rejection is not ordered in

such as only averments in the plaint are to be considered to decide the

question of rejection of plaint.

Two most common examples of this peculiar scenario of "mixed

questions of law and fact" are bar of res judicata and the bar of

limitation.

A recent example for the same can be seen in the case of Srihari

Hanumandas Totala v. Hemanth Vithal Kamat & Ors. where court was

dealing with res Judicata as a ground for rejection of plaint. It observed

in the judgment that to determine whether a suit is barred by res

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judicata, it is necessary that "(i) the 'previous suit' is decided, (ii) the

issues in the subsequent suit were directly and substantially in issue in

the former suit; (iii) the former suit was between the same parties or

parties through whom they claim, litigating under the same title; and (iv)

that these issues were adjudicated and �nally decided by a court

competent to try the subsequent suit".

The bench observed that since an adjudication of the plea of res

judicata requires consideration of the pleadings, issues and decision in

the 'previous suit', such a plea will be beyond the scope of Order 7 Rule

11 (d), where only the statements in the plant will have to be perused."

In the landmark case of Smt. Sita Shripad Narvekar and ors v. Auduth

Timblo, it was observed in this context that "for deciding the application

under Order VII Rule 11 (d) CPC, the averments in the plaint are to be

examined without any additions or subtractions. Res judicata being a

mixed question of law and fact, which the Court will have to examine

based on evidence adduced by both the parties on merits of the claim.

Another common example of 'mixed question of law and fact' can be

seen in the case of bar of limitation. The question of limitation is more

often than not, a mixed question of law and fact. In this regard, the

observation in the case of Rasumalla Yellaiah andothers vs. Chief

Commissioner, Land and Administration, Hyderabad and others may be

noted: "Question of limitation is not always a pure question of law but a

mixed question of fact and law. When several factual details have to be

gone into to decide said question of law, rejection of plaint at threshold

itself, not proper."

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However, it is no in�exible rule that rejection cannot be granted on the

ground of limitation. Where the bar of limitation is clearly and

indisputably ascertainable from the averments of plaint, the plaint can

be rejected. Infact, in the much celebrated recent case of Dahiben v.

Arvindbhai Kalyanji Bhanusali, court did reject the plaint on that ground

as the bar of limitation was clearly made out from the averments in the

plaint.

In a recent case, a 2-judge bench of the Supreme Court delivered a split

verdict on facts as to whether the plaint in the partciular case had to be

rejected as time-barred. While Justice Sanjiv Khanna held that the plaint

itself showed that the suit was time barred, Justice Bela Trivedi held that

the limitation was a mixed question of facts and law and required

trial(Saranpal Kaur Anand versus Praduman Singh Chandhok and

others).

1 Rejection of Plaint as deemed decree:

The rejection of plaint brings an end to the suit. It is pertinent to note

that the rejection of plaint is a deemed decree under Section 2(2) of the

Code. The effect, therefore, is that the same can be appealed under

Section 96, CPC. Moreover, OVII R13 provides that rejection of the plaint

on any of the grounds mentioned in rule 11 shall not of its own force

preclude the plaintiff from presenting a fresh plaint in respect of the

same cause of action. In other words, rejection of plaint doesn't bar a

fresh suit on the same ground.

1 OVII R11 are not exhaustive

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In the decision of K Akabar Ali v. Umar Khan, it was observed by the

Supreme Court that the provisions of Order VII Rue 11 are not

exhaustive and the Court has the inherent power to see that frivolous or

vexatious litigations are not allowed to consume the time of the Court

1 Alternative Orders to rejection of plaint

• Order of extension of Time

In two cases as provided under Rule 11, court may grant extra time to

the plaintiff to correct the default of his plaint, i.e in the case where:

1 where the relief claimed is undervalued, and the plaintiff, on being

required by the court to correct the valuation within a time to be

�xed by the court, fails to do so;

2 where the relief claimed is properly valued, but the plaint is written

upon paper insu�ciently stamped, and the plaintiff, on being

required by the court to supply the requisite stamp paper within a

time to be �xed by the Court, fails to do so;

In both these cases, the proviso provides that the court has the power to

extend time to make the required corrections [as an alternative to

rejecting the plaint] if not doing the same would lead to injustice.

• Order to Amend the Plaint: Can this be granted?

The question of whether court can allow a party to amend the plaint

under Order VI Rule 17, so that the plaintiff can escape rejection has

been an important judicial question, that has also led to con�icting

judgments from High Courts. For a detailed discussion on the earlier

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position, readers may refer this. However, last year, by the judgment of

Sayyed Ayaz v. Prakash G Goyal, Supreme Court has observed that no

order to amendment of plaint can be made when the plaint is otherwise

liable to be rejected under Rule 11(d). It observed that court under Rule

11 cannot grant the liberty to amend the plaint while rejecting it. Court

based its conclusion on the fact that the mandate of Rule 11 is

"compulsory" in nature, it is not in the nature of a choice that is available

to the court. In such a case, court doesn't have the option to not reject

the plaint. The only option with the court is to reject it, in case the same

is barred by law, or doesn't disclose a cause of action.

1 No piece-meal rejection of plaint

A plaint can either be rejected, in whole, or not at all. The observation of

the Supreme Court in Madhav Prasad Aggarwal & Anr. v. Axis Bank Ltd.

& Anr may be noted in this regard:

"it is not permissible to reject plaint qua any particular portion of a plaint

including against some of the defendant(s) and continue the same

against the others. In no uncertain terms the Court has held that if the

plaint survives against certain defendant(s) and/or properties, Order 7

Rule 11(d) of CPC will have no application at all, and the suit as a whole

must then proceed to trial. 12. In view of this settled legal position we

may now turn to the nature of relief." Relying upon the same, the Delhi

High court observed in

In the recent case of Kavita Tushir v. Pushpraj Dalal, the Delhi High court

had the rejected the application of rejection of plaint stating that there

cannot be any piecemeal rejection of plaint

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.Conclusion:

Rejection of plaint is an effective remedy which saves innocent

defendants from prolonged legal struggle; while also saving the

precious judicial time. Its status as a deemed decree, and the clear

legislative statement as to "no bar on fresh plaint" to be �led, on the

ground that earlier plaint was rejected, also ensures enough cushions

for this provision to not work prejudicially against the innocent plaintiffs.

TAGS ORDER 7 RULE 11 CPC ORDER VII RULE 11

Next Story

KNOW THE LAW

When Can A Citizen's Right To Travel

Abroad Be Restricted? Explained With
Judgments
So� Ahsan 19 Oct 2022 11:55 AM

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Source: Sana Irshad Mattoo/Instagram 

The Pulitzer-winning photojournalist Sana Irshad Mattoo on Tuesday

said she was again stopped from travelling to New York. She was on her

way to the US to receive the international award when she was stopped

by the immigration authorities at New Delhi's Indira Gandhi International

Airport. In a tweet, she said she was holding a valid US visa and travel

ticket.

The 28-year-old was also stopped from travelling to the US in July. Since

2019, the right to travel abroad of a number of Kashmiri journalists

including Aakash Hassan, Gowhar Geelani has been restricted by the

government. In March this year, journalist Rana Ayyub was also stopped

by the immigration authorities and prevented from boarding a �ight to

London. Chair of Board at Amnesty International India, Aakar Patel too

was stopped from leaving India at Bangalore airport in April.

While Ayyub and Patel's right to travel was restricted purportedly in

connection with the pending cases against them and they subsequently

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got relief from the courts in Delhi, it is not clear whether Mattoo has any

pending FIR against her.

Live Law explains the guidelines which govern the issuance of Look Out

Circulars, that are employed to prevent a person from travelling abroad,

and decisions of various courts in this regard.

Article 21

The right to travel is a part of personal liberty under Article 21 of the

constitution. The Supreme Court in April 2019 said, "The right to travel

abroad is an important basic human right for it nourishes independent

and self-determining creative character of the individual, not only by

extending his freedoms of action, but also by extending the scope of his

experience." However, as is well settled, even fundamental rights can be

restricted "according to the procedure established by law".

The Passport Act and Lookout Circulars (LOCs)

The 1967 Act provides for issuance of passports and travel documents.

Under Section 10A of the Act, the passport or travel documents can be

suspended in certain cases by the central government "in the interests

of the sovereignty and integrity of India, the security of India, friendly

relations of India with any foreign country, or in the interests of the

general public". The departure of a person can be prevented by an

imigration authority on receiving intimation from the designated

authority or central government.

The Centre in 1979 issued guidelines for issuance of look out circulars

in respect of the arrival and departure of people whose travel the

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investigating agencies want restricted or banned. The guidelines were

amended in 2010 in pursuance of Delhi High Court's judgements in

Vikram Sharma vs Union of India and Sumer Singh Salkan versus Asstt.

Director & Ors. While there have been many modi�cations in the

guidelines since then, they were reviewed last in February 2021 by the

Ministry of Home Affairs.

An LOC against a person is opened by the Bureau Of Immigration (BoI)

after receiving a request from the competent authority, who are senior

o�cers in the central government or law enforcement agencies. A

district magistrate or a superintendent of the police can also get an LOC

issued. The criminal courts can also order issuance of LOC. The legal

liability of the action taken by immigration authorities in pursuance of

the LOC rests with the originating agency, as per the guidelines.

"Recourse to LOC is to be taken in cognizable offences under IPC

or other penal laws. The details … in the enclosed Proforma

regarding 'reason for opening LOC' must invariably be provided

without which the subject of an LOC will not be arrested/detained".

The guidelines make it clear that in cases where there is no cognizable

offence under IPC and other penal laws, the LOC subject cannot be

detained or arrested or prevented from leaving the country. In such

cases, the originating agency can only request that they be informed

about the arrival or departure of the subject.

However, the guidelines also state that LOCs can be issued and

departure can be declined even in such cases which may not be covered

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under the guidelines, if departure of such person is considered

"detrimental to the sovereignty or security or integrity of India or that the

same is detrimental to the bilateral relations with any country or to the

strategic and/or economic interests of India or if such person is allowed

to leave, he may potentially indulge in an act of terrorism, or offences

against the State and/or that such departure ought not be permitted in

the larger public interest at any given point of time."

Till subsistence of the LOC, the immigration authorities are bound to

stop the persons against whom it has been issued. "The LOC opened

shall remain in force until and unless a deletion request is received by

BoI from the Originator Itself," as per the guidelines.

The Originator is required keep reviewing the LoCs on quarterly and

annual basis and thereafter immediately submit any proposal for

deletion to the BoI.

Courts on LOCs

In its decision on a petition challenging the LOC issued against a person

whose family members are accused in a case being probed by the

Central Bureau of Investigation and Enforcement Directorate, the Delhi

High Court on July 4 said, "unless a citizen is suspected to be involved in

the commission or facing investigation or trial on the accusation of

offences which are cognizable under the Indian Penal Code or other

Statutes, the citizen can neither be detained, arrested or prevented from

leaving the country and the originating agency can only seek intimation

of his arrival and/or departure."

Justice Mukta Gupta in the order observed that when it comes to 'LOC of

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intimation', the authorities at the airport or any other port of departure or

arrival "cannot restrain or detain the person on the pretext that

intimation of his arrival or departure is required to be given to the

originating agency which would indirectly serve as a detentive/

preventive LOC."

The court made the observations after interpreting the guidelines or

O�ce Memorandum dated 27th October, 2010 of the MHA. However, the

OM issued in February 2021 makes it clear that departure of a person

from India can be declined in exceptional cases, even in absence of FIR.

Punjab and Haryana High Court on April 5 said the guidelines do not

provide for supply of the LOC to the person against whom it has been

issued. The non-supply of reasons for issuing LOC , and absence of a

post decisional hearing to the subject of the LOC, is not just, fair and

reasonable procedure, said the court, while holding it to be violative of

Article 21 of the Constitution of India.

"It may be that before issuing the LOC the respondent [authorities] may

not wish to issue a prior notice to the subject of the LOC like the

petitioner because there is every possibility that, after receiving such

notice, the subject may clandestinely leave the country," said the court.

However, it further said: "But we see no impediment to give a post

decisional opportunity to the petitioner by supplying to the subject of

LOC, the copy of the LOC, and the reasons for issuing it so that the

subject of the LOC can take legal recourse to challenge it."

The Karnataka High Court in a judgement passed on August 24 said the

statutory sanction for issuance of LOC can be traced to Section 10A and

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10B of the Passports Act. The object for issuance of LOC is to ensure

that the subject of LOC becomes available for interrogation, trial or any

inquiry, it said.

The court rejected a contention that a notice ought to be issued to the

subject of the LOC prior to issuance of LOC. However, it added: "At the

time when he is stopped and handed over to the originator, he is, in the

considered view of this Court, entitled to know why his travel is being

stopped with a copy of the LOC handed over to his hands".

On January 12, Justice Rekha Palli of Delhi High Court rejected the

Centre's argument that a writ court under Article 226 of the Constitution

of India should not review the decision to issue LOC. "In fact, in case it is

found that the decision of the authorities is without application of mind

to the relevant factors, the Court can, and in fact, should come to the

rescue of the individual," said the court

The court also said, "the issuance of a LOC is an extremely severe step

and when purportedly issued in exceptional circumstances, on the

ground of the departure of the person being 'detrimental to the

economic interests of India', the authorities must tread with caution.

Once this Clause itself is meant to be used in exceptional

circumstances, it cannot be permitted to be used in such a mechanical

manner, as in the present case".

Relying on Delhi High Court's 2010 decision in Sumer Singh Salkan

versus Asstt. Director & Ors, the Karnataka High Court on August 29 in

2019, said: "recourse to lookout notice can be taken by the investigating

agency in cognizable offences under IPC or the other penal laws, where

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the accused was deliberately evading arrest or not appearing in the trial

court despite NBWs and other coercive measures and there was

likelihood of the accused leaving the country to evade trial/

investigation."

Quashing the LOC against journalist Rana Ayyub, the Delhi High Court on

April 4 said, "The impugned LOC is accordingly liable to be set aside as

being devoid of merits as well as for infringing the human right of the

Petitioner to travel abroad and to exercise her freedom of speech and

expression".

In Aakar Patel's case where the LOC was issued by CBI, the Special

Judge (PC Act) on April 16 said, "In the scheme of CBI Crime Manual,

provision and procedure for LOC is introduced to deal with absconders.

It is with respect to the absconding accused that when suspicion arises

that the absconding accused may �ee from the country, LOC can be

issued to thwart any such attempt. So a wanted accused, absconding to

join investigation is the pre-condition for issuance of LOC during

investigation."

The court in that order also said that investigation has been complete in

the case against him and the matter is at the stage of consideration of

the charge-sheet by the trial court for cognizance. "Once the matter is in

the Court, circumstances warranting opening of LOC will arise only when

the respondent accused does not appear in the Trial Court despite

NBWs and other coercive measures," said the Special Judge.

The trial court order has been challenged by the CBI before Delhi High

Court. Issuing notice on CBI's plea, the high court on May 13 said the

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trial court observations will not come in the way of implementation of

the guidelines issued by MHA last year. CBI in its petition has called the

issuance of LOC a "lesser form of coercive measure" to ensure that an

accused is available to the face the process of law. The agency has also

argued that it draws the power to issue an LOC from the CBI manual.

Agreeing with an argument that the O�ce Memorandum on LOCs

cannot be described as "law", Justice Rajiv Shakdher in 2015 said, "This

submission, I must confess, has much merit in view of the decisions of

the Supreme Court both in Maneka Gandhi case as well as in the case of

A.K. Gopalan. Both judgements take the view that "law" referred to in

Article 21, would mean "enacted law"."

TAGS RIGHT TO TRAVEL ABROAD LOOK OUT CIRCULARS INTERPRETATION

FOREIGNERS REGISTRATION OFFICE IMMIGRATION DELHI HIGH COURT

PUNJAB AND HARYANA COURT KARNATAKA HIGH COURT HIGH COURT

SUPREME COURT

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