INDIAN SOLDIERS LITIGATION ACT, 1925
(1) This Act may be called The Indian Soldiers (Litigation) Act, 1925.
1[(2) It extends to the whole of India 2[***].]
(3) It shall come into force on the first day of April, 1925.
The Act has been extended to the Union territory of Pondicherry subject to the modifications that (i) a reference to a law not in force or to a functionary not in existence in Pondicherry shall be construed as a reference to corresponding law in force or to corresponding functionary in existence, in Pondicherry and (ii) sub-section (3) shall be omitted—See S.O. 4, Gazette of India, 1963, Pt. II, section 3 (ii), p. 3.
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1. Subs. by A.L.O. 19
In this Act, unless there is anything repugnant in the subject or context,—
1[(a) “Court” means a Court other than a Criminal Court and includes any such tribunal or other authority as may be specified by the Central Government by notification in the Official Gazette being a tribunal or authority which is empowered by law to receive evidence on any matter pending before it and on the basis of such evidence to determine, after hearing the parties before it, the rights and obligations of the parties in relation to such matter];
(b) “Indian soldier” means any person subject to 2[the Army Act, 1950, or the Air Force Act 1950], [or the Navy Act, 1957];
(c) “prescribed” means prescribed by rules made under this Act; and
(d) “proceeding” includ
For the purposes of this Act, an Indian soldier shall be deemed to be or, as the case may be, to have been serving—
(a) under special conditions (when he is or has been serving under war conditions), or overseas, or at any place 1[beyond India], 2[or any such place within India as may be specified by the Central Government by notification in the Official Gazette];
(b) under war conditions—when he is or has been, at any time during the continuance of any hostilities declared by the 3[Central Government] by notification in the 4[Official Gazette] to constitute a state of war for the purpose of this Act or at any time during a period of six months thereafter,—
(i) serving out of India,
(ii) under orders to proceed on field service,
If any person presenting any plaint, application or appeal to any Court has reason to believe that any adverse party is an Indian soldier who is serving under special conditions, he shall state the fact in his plaint, application or appeal.
If any Collector has reason to believe that any Indian soldier, who ordinarily resides or has property in his district and who is a party to any proceeding pending before any Court, is unable to appear therein, the Collector may certify the facts in the prescribed manner to the Court.
1[(1) If a Collector has certified under Section 5, or if the Court has reason to believe, that an Indian soldier, who is a party to any proceeding pending before it, is unable to appear therein, and if the soldier is not represented by any person duly authorised to appear, plead or act on his behalf, the Court shall suspend the proceeding and shall give notice thereof in the prescribed manner to the prescribed authority:
Provided that the Court may refrain from suspending the proceeding and issuing notice if—
(a) the proceeding is a suit, appeal or application instituted or made by the soldier, alone or conjointly with others with the object of enforcing a right of pre-emption, or
(b) the interests of the soldier in the proceeding are, in the opinion of the Court, either identical with
If, on receipt of a notice under section 6, the prescribed authority certifies in the prescribed manner to the Court in which the proceedings is pending that the soldier in respect of whom the notice was given is serving under special conditions, and that a postponement of the proceedings in respect of the soldier is necessary, in the interest of justice, the Court shall thereupon postpone the proceeding in respect of the soldier for the prescribed period, or, if no period has been prescribed, for such period as it thinks fit.
If, after issue of notice under section 6, the prescribed authority either certifies that the soldier is not serving under special conditions or that such postponement is not necessary, or fails to certify, in the case of a soldier resident in the district in which the Court is situate within two months or, in any other case, within three months, from the date of the issue of the notice that such postponement is necessary, the Court may, if it thinks fit, continue the proceeding.
When any document purporting to be signed by the Commanding Officer of an Indian soldier who is a party to any proceeding is produced by or on behalf of the soldier before the Court in which the proceeding is pending and is to the effect that the soldier—
(a) is on leave of absence for a period not exceeding two months, and is on the expiration of his leave to rejoin his unit with a view to proceeding on service under special conditions, or
(b) is on sick leave for a period not exceeding three months, and is on the expiration of his leave to rejoin his unit with a view to proceeding on service under special conditions.
the proceeding in respect of such soldier may, in any case such as if referred to in the proviso to 1[sub-section (1) of section 6] and shall, in any other case, be postpo
(1) In any proceeding before a Court in which a decree or order has been passed against any Indian soldier 1[***] whilst he was serving under any special conditions, the soldier 2[or, if he is dead, his legal representative] may apply to the Court which passed the decree or order for an order to set aside the same, and, if the Court after giving an opportunity to the opposite party of being heard, is satisfied that the interests of justice require that the decree or order should be set aside as against the soldier, the Court shall, subject to such conditions, if any, as it thinks fit to impose, make an order accordingly.
3[(2) The period of limitation for an application under sub-section (1) shall be ninety days from the date of the decree or order, or where the summons or notice was duly served on the soldier in the proceeding in which the decree or order was passed, from the date
In computing the period of limitation prescribed by sub-section (2) of section 10 of this Act, the Indian Limitation Act, 1908, or any other law for the time being in force, for any suit, appeal or application to a Court, any party to which is or has been an Indian soldier, or is the legal representative of an Indian soldier, the period during which the soldier has been serving under any special conditions, and, if the soldier has died while so serving, the period from the date of his death to the date on which official intimation thereof was sent to his next-of-kin by the authorities in India, shall be excluded:
Provided that this section shall not apply in the case of any suit, appeal or application instituted or made with the object of enforcing a right of pre-emption 2[3[except where the said right accrues in such circumstances, and is in respect of agricultural land and villag
If any Court is in doubt whether, for the purposes of section 10 or section 11, an Indian soldier is or was at any particular time serving under special conditions, or has died while so serving, or as to the date of such death or as to the date on which official intimation of such death was sent to his next-of-kin by the authorities in India, the Court may refer the point for the decision of the prescribed authority, and the certificate of that authority shall be conclusive evidence on the point.]
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1. Subs. by Ord. 64 of 1942, sec. 7, for the original (w.e.f. 12-12-1942).
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1[(1)] The 2[Central Government] 3[***] may, by notification in the [Official Gazette] make 4rules to provide for all or any of the following matters, namely:—
(a) the manner and form in which any notice or certificate under this Act shall be given;
(b) the period for which proceedings or any class of proceedings shall be postponed under section 7;
(c) the persons who shall be the prescribed authorities for the purpose of this Act;
(d) any other matter which is to be or may be prescribed; and
(e) generally any matters incidental to the purposes of this Act.5[(2) Every rule made under this section shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made, before each House of Parliament, while it is
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