Lim 17 — Effect of fraud or mistake

Limitation Act, 1963

Statutory text

(1) Where, in the case of any suit or application for which a period of limitation is prescribed by this Act,—
(a) the suit or application is based upon the fraud of the defendant or respondent or his agent; or
(b) the  knowledge  of the right or title  on which  a suit or application is founded  is  concealed by
the fraud of any such person as aforesaid; or
(c) the suit or application is for relief from the consequences of a mistake; or
(d)  where  any  document  necessary  to  establish  the  right  of  the  plaintiff  or  applicant  has  been
fraudulently concealed from him,

the  period of limitation shall not begin to run until the plaintiff or applicant has  discovered  the  fraud  or
the  mistake  or  could,  with  reasonable  diligence,  have  discovered  it;  or  in  the  case  of  a  concealed
document, until the plaintiff or the applicant first had the means of producing the concealed document or
compelling its production:
Provided that nothing in this section shall enable any suit to be instituted or application to be made to recover or enforce any charge against, or set aside any transaction affecting, any property which—
(i) in the case of fraud, has been purchased for valuable consideration by a person who was not a
party  to the  fraud  and  did not  at  the  time  of  the  purchase  know,  or have reason  to  believe,  that  any
fraud had been committed, or
(ii)  in  the  case  of  mistake,  has  been  purchased  for  valuable  consideration  subsequently  to  the
transaction in which the mistake was made, by a person who did not know, or have reason to believe,
that the mistake had been made, or
(iii)  in  the  case  of  a  concealed  document,  has  been  purchased  for  valuable  consideration  by  a
person  who  was  not  a  party  to  the  concealment  and,  did  not  at  the  time  of  purchase  know,  or  have reason to believe, that the document had been concealed.
(2)  Where  a  judgment-debtor  has,  by  fraud  or  force,  prevented  the  execution  of  a  decree  or  order within the period of limitation, the court may, on the application of the judgment-creditor made after the
expiry of the said period extend the period for execution of the decree or order:
Provided that such application is made within one year from the date of the discovery of the fraud or the cessation of force, as the case may be.

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