What are general provisions of plaint?

When it can be
rejected?

Table of Contents
• Introduction
• Plaint
• Necessary Contents of A Plaint
• Rejection of plaint
o Provisions on the Rejection of Plaint under C.P.C.
o Landmark Cases on Rejection of Plaint
• Drafting of a Plaint
• Conclusion

Introduction
If you’ve ever thought why this concept of plaint comes into the picture and what are the benefits & why
this plaint is necessary, here ‘s everything you need to know. This whole article on sample plaints deals
with the concept of ‘Plaint’ according to the provision of law and what are the necessary contents which
are required to be there in plaint. This article also deals with the other aspects of plaint like common
mistakes made in the plaint and some tips to write a proper plaint according to the provision of CPC.

Plaint
A Plaint is a legal document that contains the content of any civil suit which shows the Plaintiff’s claim
after filing suit. The plaint is the first step of the Plaintiff in the form of a legal document for the
commencement of suit and it shows what a Plaintiff wants from that suit. The concept of a plaint is
mentioned in the Civil Procedure Code. Through the help of plaint, the plaintiff narrates or describes the
cause of action and related information which is considered as essential from the viewpoint of the suit.

In the case of plaint, the cause of action consists of two divisions, first is the legal theory (the factual
situation based on which the plaintiff claims to have suffered) and second is the legal remedy that the
plaintiff seeks from the court. A plaint is considered an important concept because it is the foremost and
initial stage to initiate any lawsuit and helps to find a civil court of appropriate jurisdiction.

Order VII of the Code of Civil Procedure deals, particularly with plaint. In Order VII of CPC, there are
many different rules which deal with different constituents of plaint. Rules 1 to 8 deal with the particulars
of the plaint. Rule 9 of CPC deals with how the plaint will be admitted and after that Rule 10 to 10-B talks
about the return of the plaint and the appearance of parties. And the main Rules i.e 11 to 13 deal with the
rejection of the plaint and in which circumstances the plaint can be rejected.

Section 26 of the Code of Civil Procedure states “Every suit shall be instituted by the presentation of a
plaint or in such other manner as may be prescribed.” This section clearly shows that plaint is very much
necessary for the establishment of a suit before the civil or commercial court.
Necessary Contents of a Plaint
A plaint is a legal document that contains a lot of necessary contents in the absence of which, it cannot be
considered as a plaint. The contents necessary for a plaint are mentioned in Rules 1 to 8 of Order VII of
CPC. These are mentioned below:

• Plaint should contain the name of the commercial or civil court where a suit will be initiated.
• Plaint should contain details of the plaintiff such as the name, address, and description.
• Plaint should contain the name, residence, and description of the defendant.
• When a plaintiff has some defects or problems in health or any type of disability, the Plaint
should contain a statement of these effects.
• Plaint should contain the facts due to which cause of action arises and where the cause of action
arises it should also be mentioned.
• Plaint should not only mention facts due to which cause of action arises but also those facts
which help in recognizing the jurisdiction.
• Plaint should also contain about that relief which the plaintiff seeks from the court.
• When the plaintiff is ready to set off a portion of his claim, the Plaint should contain that amount
which has been so allowed.
• Plaint should contain a statement of the value of the subject-matter of suit not only for the
purpose of jurisdiction but also for the purpose of court-fees.
• At last, the content that should be on plaint is the plaintiff verification on oath.
This shows that the plaint is a necessary component for the successful initiation of suits in commercial or
civil courts and plays a very important role throughout the suit. Some additional particulars which were not
mentioned above include the following: Plaintiff shall state the exact amount of money to be obtained from
the defendant as given under Rule 2 of order VII whereas Rule 3 of order VII of CPC states that when the
plaint contains subject matter of immovable property, then the property must be duly described.

Rejection of plaint
The Plaint shall be rejected in certain situations when requirements are not fulfilled. Some of the situations
in which the plaint is rejected are as follows:

• The plaint is rejected in a case where the cause of action is not disclosed. If the cause of action
is not disclosed then it is not possible to prove the damage caused to the plaintiff. To seek relief
against the defendant, the facts need to be mentioned clearly. In the case of Snp Shipping Service
Pvt. Ltd. v. World Tanker Carrier Corporation, the plaint was rejected and the suit dismissed
under Order 7, Rule 1(a) of the C.P.C.,1908.

• The plaint is also rejected in a case where the plaintiff relief is undervalued and the plaintiff is
requested by the court to correct the valuation within the given time frame but the plaintiff fails
to do so.
 • The plaint is rejected in a case where all the documents are not properly stamped and the
plaintiff on being required by the court to supply the required stamp paper within a time to be
fixed by court fails to do so.

• The plaint is mostly rejected due to the statement mentioned in the plaint secured by any law or
statute that doesn’t give any right to the plaintiff to file the suit.

• When a duplicate copy of the plaint is not submitted whereas it is mentioned that it is mandatory
to submit the duplicate copy then in that condition plaint is liable to be dismissed.

• The plaint is rejected when the plaintiff fails to comply with the provisions of Rule 9 of Order
VII of C.P.C.

Provisions on the Rejection of Plaint under C.P.C.

As we have already said in what circumstances the plaint can be rejected and now what are the provisions
that are related to the rejection of the plaint under Code of Civil Procedure. Some of the provisions regarding
the rejection of a plaint are mentioned below:

1. Order VII Rule 12 of C.P.C states the procedure on rejecting the plaint so that it can be used as
a precedent for future cases.
2. Order VII Rule 13 of C.P.C states that rejection of the plaint does not stop the presentation or
filling of the fresh plaint.
Two modes which are mentioned to show the manner in which the plaint can be rejected:

1. The defendant has the right to file an application in the form of an interlocutory application at
any stage of proceedings for the rejection of the plaint.
2. Suo moto (on its own): The meaning of the suo moto itself defines the way of rejection of the
plaint. Suo moto rejection is under Order 7 Rule 11 which states Rejection of the plaint. A court
can itself try a suit under Order 7 Rule 11 if the plaint fulfills the conditions discussed in the
first point.

Landmark Cases on Rejection of Plaint

Many cases came in front of court related to the rejection of plaint but some of the cases given below are
now considered as a landmark for other cases on the rejection of plaint:

• Kalepur Pala Subrahmanyam v Tiguti Venkata: In this case, it was said that a plaint cannot be
rejected in part and retained part under this rule. It must be rejected as a whole and not with
the rejection of one part and acceptance of another. This judgment is considered as a landmark
judgment on the rejection of the plaint.
• Sopan Sukhdeo Sable v. Asstt. Charity Commr.: In this case, it was held that where the suit
was at the stage of recording of evidence and an application under Order 7 Rule 11 of the
 code was filed to delay the proceedings of the suit, the application under Order 7 rule 11 of
the code was rejected.
• Bibhas Mohan Mukherjee v. Hari Charan Banerjee: In this case, it was held that an Order
rejecting a plaint is a decree and hence it is applicable and binding in other cases which
involves the rejection of the plaint.
• K. ROJA vs. U.S. RAYU: Court, in this case, held that any application for the rejection of the
plaint under Order 7 Rule 11 of the code of civil procedure can be filed at any stage and the
court has to dispose of the same before proceeding with the trial.
• Kuldeep Singh Pathania vs. Bikram Singh Jarya: In this, the court held that for an application
under Order VII Rule 11(a) of Code of Civil Procedure, only the pleadings of the plaintiff can
be looked into and neither the written statement nor averments can be considered for inquiry.

Drafting of a Plaint
Drafting of plaint on any issue is considered as most important in order to file the suit in the court and in
this plaint drafted for the injunction on the use of unused land as a dumping area by the resident of Malviya
Nagar, New Delhi that leads to health problem of the plaintiff due to huge collection of waste material and
bad smell all the time.

IN THE CIVIL COURT AT SAKET NAGAR, DELHI

Suit No. 166 of 2020

Abhinav Sharma

B104, Malviya Nagar, New Delhi ……… Plaintiff

V.

Sharmistha Sharma

Malviya Nagar, New Delhi …….. Defendant

Suit for the Injunction On the use of Unused land as a dumping area

The Plaintiff submitted as under:

1. The plaintiff is a resident of Malviya Nagar, New Delhi, and the Defendant is a neighbor of the
plaintiff.
2. Unused land is near the house of the plaintiff, which is used by the resident of B106 i.e.
defendant as a dumping yard for the waste material of her house.
 3. That the Defendant was all the time throwing the waste material in that unused land near the
house of the plaintiff.
4. Since a very long time of being used as a dumping yard by the defendant, there is a collection
of huge waste material that leads to the health problem of the plaintiff.
5. That the court has jurisdiction on this matter to fix an injunction on the use of unused land as a
dumping area as it restricts his free movement and also leads to affect health due to defendant
action.
Prayer:

It is Prayed that a decree for the injunction is passed in favor of the plaintiff against the defendant. And
some other relief as the court thinks fit.

Place: Malviya Nagar Signature

Date: 04/02/2020 (Abhinav Sharma)

Verification:

In the above-named plaintiff do hereby verify that the contents of the paras no. 1,2,3 and 4 are true to my
knowledge and the contents of remaining paras are according to legal advice from my advocate which I
believe to be true.

Place: Malviya Nagar s/d of Plaintiff

Date: 04/02/2020 (Abhinav Sharma)

Conclusion
The plaint is a concept that emerged in the field of law for the better knowledge of the point of conflict and
facts so that effective and well-informed decisions can be delivered. The concept of plaint is required in the
commercial and civil matters which are dealt with by the commercial and civil courts. But the plaint has
increased the complexity of the process and may make it tough to file the suit for legal remedy by the
common people. It is also a time taking process due to which people are dissatisfied with this concept of
plaint.

Due to the presence of many orders and rules under the provision of the Code of Civil Procedure for the
regulation of plaint rejection, formation, and drafting of the plaint brings a lot of chaos in the civil system.

In my opinion, a plaint helps in improving the knowledge of facts and points of conflict. However,
simplifying the regulations under the provisions of C.P.C will make it easier for a layman to file the suit.
Otherwise filing a plaint with a lot of regulation is quite difficult. So, instead of scrapping the concept of
plaints itself, the regulation under several provisions of the law should be reduced.