What is Specific Relief Act?

Specific Relief means a relief in specific which aims at the exact fulfillment of an obligation or specific performance of a contract. It is directed to obtaining an outcome of which a person is deprived of and is entitled to ask for.

It is the remedy by which a party that omits a contract is compelled to do or omit the very act which he has promised to do.

TWO BROAD CLASSES OF REMEDIES

The remedies which have been registered by Civil Court of Justice against any wrong or injury fall broadly into two classes: –

• Those by which the person obtains the very things, which he is entitled.
• Those by which he obtains not that very thing but compensation for the loss of it.

The former is the specific relief while the latter is compensatory. The specific relief is a remedy which the court orders for instance for the specific performance when the court makes a declaration or grants an injunction.

KINDS OF REMEDIES UNDER THIS ACT

Normally, there are seven kinds of remedies that may be granted under the provisions of the Specific Relief Act by the court:

• Recovery of possession of property.
• Specific performance of contracts.
• Rectification of instruments.
• Rescission of contracts.
• Cancellation of instruments.
• Declaratory decrees.
• Injunction.

Out of the above-mentioned categories, recovery of possession of property has been discussed below:

Recovery of possession of property is dealt with by Section 5 to Section 8 under Chapter II of the Specific Relief Act. Property may be either-

• Immovable property
• Movable property

RECOVERY OF IMMOVABLE PROPERTY

Section 5^[2] defines that a person entitled to the possession of specific immovable property may recover it if in a manner provided by the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908. A person who seeks to recover immovable property in the instant of his title to the same is required to file a regular suit which involves a long-drawn procedure. The Act provides 2 kinds of actions with regard to the recovery of the possession of the immovable property. The first kind of action arises when the claim is made on the “basis of title” whereas the second arises when the claim is merely “based on possession”. Person shall include any company or association or body of an individual whether incorporated or not.

POSSESSION- Corpus and Animus possession means the physical possibility of a person dealing with the property as he likes and not physical possession.

SIR POLLOC says that in common speech a man is said to have possessed or to be in possession of anything of which he has the apparent control or from the use of which he has the apparent power of excluding others.

Satya Narayan v. Konduru (1953)

The Supreme Court held that if the property belongs in fact to someone else, the title required by possession is good against the whole world except the true owner. It is a principle of law that a person who has been in a long continuous possession of an immovable property can protect the sale by seeking an injunction at any person in the world other than the true owner. It is also well settled that even the true owner of the property can get back his possession only being restored to the due process of law.

Section 6

1. Sued by person dispossessed of immovable property. This section says that if any person is dispossessed without his consent of immovable property otherwise than in due course of law, he or any person claiming through him may be sued to recover possession thereof notwithstanding any other title.
2. No suit under this section shall be brought-
3. After the expiry of 6 months from the date of dispossession.
4. Against the government.
5. No appeal or review shall lie from any order or decree passed in any suit instituted under this section.
6. Nothing in this section shall bar any person from suing to establish his title to such property and to recover possession thereof.

The essential requirements of a suit under Section 6 are-

• The person suing has been in possession.
• He must have been dispossessed.
• The dispossession must be of immovable property.
• The dispossession must be otherwise than in due course of law.
• The suit must be brought within a period of 6 month from the date of dispossession.
• The dispossession had not been made by the government but by any person.
• Under this section, any order or decree is final in the sense that it is not open to review or appeal. Although, it is subject to revision by the High Court.

The object of Section 6 is to discourage people from taking law into their hand however good their title may be. The main objective of section 6 is to provide a special summary and speedy remedy for recovery of possession without establishing title to a person who be whatever his title in possession of immovable property is illegally posted there from without his will and consent otherwise than the due course of law.

Section 7- Recovery of specific movable property

Section 7 deals with the circumstances where the plaintiff has to file a regular suit for the recovery of the movable property. The nature and quality of which is immaterial and the plaintiff need not be the absolute owner of it. It lays down that a person entitled to the possession of specific movable property may recover the same in the manner prescribed by the Code of Civil Procedure.

EXPLANATION 1: A trustee may sue under this section for the possession of property for beneficial interest in which the person for whom he is trustee is entitled.

EXPLANATION 2: A special or temporary right to the present possession of property to the beneficial interest in which the person for whom he is trustee is sufficient to support a suit under this section.

• Special or temporary rights may either arise by an act by the owner of the goods i.e., by bailment, lien, etc.
• Otherwise than by an act of the owner i.e., by an unauthorized pledge or sale or finding of lost goods.

Rristo Kamini v. Administrator General (1903)

In this case it was held that section 7 provides for the recovery of movable property in specific government security or not money. They are specific movable property.

Section 8- Liability of Possession Not as Owner to Deliver to Person Entitled to Immediate Possession

This Section deals with the circumstances which entitle the plaintiff to recover the specific movable property itself from the defendant who is not the owner thereof in case where the property has a peculiar value or associations and cannot be adequately compensated for in terms of money.

Section 8 says that any person having the possession or control of a particular article of movable property of which he is not the owner may be compelled specifically to deliver it to the person entitled to its immediate possession in any of the following case-

• When the claim is held by the defendant as the agent or trustee of the plaintiff.
• When compensation in many would not afford the plaintiff adequate relief for the loss of the thing claimed.
• When it would be extremely difficult to ascertain the actual damage caused by its loss.
• When the possession of the thing claimed has been wrongfully transferred from the plaintiff.

SECTION 8(A) FIDUCIARY CAPACITY

Where fiduciary relation subsists between the parties whether it be the case of an agent or a trustee or a broker or whether the subject matter be stopped or carriage the court will interfere to pretend a sale either by the party interested with the goods or by a person claiming under him through an alleged abuse of force.

SECTION 8(B) COMPENSATION IS NOT ADEQUATE RELIEF

It is lately observed that articles of curiosity or of articles of family interest or those connected with events in family history. Family ideals cannot be represented in money to be given as damages in the court in such cases will have resources for actual delivery.  

SECTION 8(C)^[9]: TO ASCERTAIN THE ACTUAL DAMAGE IS EXTREMELY DIFFICULT:

Under this clause the articles are such that no two men can value at the same price.

SECTION 8(D)^[10]: POSSESSION OF THE THING WRONGFULLY TRANSFERRED:

It is necessary that there has been a wrongful transfer of possession. Hence, RECOVERY OF POSSESSION OF PROPERTY has been properly elaborated in the above-mentioned article.

[1] Source link.
[2] Source link.
[3] 1953 AIR 195, 1953 SCR 1001
[4] Source link.
[5]Source link.
[6] Source link.
[7] Source link.
[8] Source link.
[9] Source link.
[10] Source link.