Telangana Civil Judge cheat sheet

Section 9: civil courts have jurisdiction over all civil suits unless barred expressly or impliedly; suits of a civil nature concerning religious rites or a mere right to worship are excluded.

Order II Rule 2: a plaintiff must include the whole of a claim in one suit; omitting a portion of the claim bars a later suit for the omitted part, but omission of a distinct cause of action only bars it if leave of court was not sought.

Section 11 res judicata requires: same parties or privies, same matter directly and substantially in issue, same title, competent court, and a final decision; Explanation IV extends it to matters constructively in issue.

Order VI Rule 17: amendment may be allowed at any stage if it does not cause injustice and is necessary to determine the real question; after trial begins, no amendment unless the court concludes it could not have been raised earlier despite due diligence.

Order VII Rule 11: plaint rejected for want of cause of action, undervaluation of relief, insufficient court fee, barred by law, or failure to comply with Section 80 notice; rejection does not bar a fresh suit on the same cause (Order VII Rule 13).

Section 80: no suit against the Government or a public officer in respect of an act purporting to be done in official capacity until two months after written notice; urgent relief may be granted with the leave of the court.

Order XXXIX Rules 1-2: temporary injunction requires prima facie case, irreparable injury, and balance of convenience; Rule 3 requires reasons to be recorded for ex parte orders, and Rule 4 permits discharge, variation or setting aside.

Section 96 appeals lie from every decree except consent decrees; Section 100 second appeal lies only where the High Court is satisfied that the case involves a substantial question of law.

Order XLI Rule 27: additional evidence at appellate stage is permitted only where the trial court wrongly refused to admit evidence, the evidence was not within knowledge, or the appellate court needs it to pronounce judgment.

BNSS Section 35 (CrPC Section 41) arrest powers require recorded reasons; for offences punishable with less than seven years, arrest is barred unless the conditions in Section 35(3) are satisfied and recorded.

BNSS Section 173 (CrPC Section 161) examination of witnesses during investigation: statements to police are not signed and cannot be used as evidence except under Section 145 of the Evidence Act / Section 148 BSA for contradiction.

BNSS Section 183 (CrPC Section 167): default bail accrues if the investigation is not completed within 60 or 90 days, as applicable, and the accused is willing to furnish bail; the right is indefeasible.

BNSS Section 187 (CrPC Section 173) mandates time-bound investigation: 90 days for offences punishable with 10 years or more, and 60 days for other offences, with extension by the court.

BNSS Section 479 (CrPC Section 436A): an undertrial who has served half the maximum sentence may be released on bail; first-time offenders get this after one-third of the maximum sentence.

BNSS Section 356 (CrPC Section 320) compounding: offences compoundable with court permission include those punishable with less than three years; Section 359 allows compounding of certain non-compoundable offences with the High Court's consent.

BNSS Section 438 (CrPC Section 438) anticipatory bail may be granted by the High Court or Court of Session; conditions such as joining investigation may be imposed, and the protection ordinarily continues until the end of trial.

Section 154 CrPC / BNSS Section 173: FIR must be registered for a cognizable offence; refusal can be challenged under Section 156(3) CrPC / BNSS Section 175(3) before the Magistrate.

BNSS Section 398 (CrPC Section 482) preserves the High Court's inherent power to quash proceedings to prevent abuse of process or to secure the ends of justice, as in State of Haryana v. Bhajan Lal.

BNS Section 103 (IPC Section 302) punishment for murder: death or imprisonment for life, and fine; culpable homicide not amounting to murder is punishable under Section 105 (IPC Section 304) with life or up to ten years.

BNS Section 101 defines murder; the five clauses of IPC Section 300 map to BNS Section 101, and the exceptions to IPC Section 300 map to BNS Section 102.

BNS Section 63 (IPC Section 375) defines rape; Section 64 prescribes punishment, with minimum ten years and up to life; the death penalty applies where the victim is under twelve or in certain repeat cases.

BNS Section 85 (IPC Section 498A) cruelty by husband or relatives: imprisonment up to three years and fine; the Explanation covers conduct likely to drive a woman to suicide or grave injury to health.

BNS Section 111 (IPC Section 391) dacoity: five or more persons conjointly committing or attempting robbery; punishment is life or rigorous imprisonment up to ten years, with fine.

BNS Section 318 (IPC Section 420) cheating: deception, fraudulent or dishonest inducement, and delivery of property; punishment is imprisonment up to seven years and fine; the distinction from breach of contract lies in the dishonest intention at inception.

BNS Section 356 (IPC Section 499) defamation: exceptions include truth for the public good, fair comment on public conduct, and good-faith communication; punishment is simple imprisonment up to two years, or fine, or both.

General exceptions under BNS Sections 14-44 (IPC Sections 76-106) include mistake of fact, accident, infancy (under seven years absolute; seven to twelve with immaturity), unsoundness of mind, intoxication, and private defence.

BNS Section 4 (IPC Section 2) applies to offences committed in India; Section 1(2) BNS has extra-territorial application where the act constitutes an offence under the law in force at the place of commission.

BSA Section 2 (Evidence Act Section 3) defines 'evidence' to include oral and documentary evidence, and 'document' to include electronic records; electronic records are admissible subject to Sections 61-63 BSA.

BSA Section 63 (Evidence Act Section 65B) requires a certificate for admissibility of electronic records; Anvar P.V. v. P.K. Basheer (2014) made the certificate mandatory for secondary electronic evidence.

BSA Section 22 (Evidence Act Section 24) excludes confessions caused by inducement, threat or promise from a person in authority, if the confession appears to have been caused thereby.

BSA Section 23 (Evidence Act Section 25) bars confessions to a police officer; Section 26 bars confessions in police custody unless made in the immediate presence of a Magistrate.

BSA Section 32 (Evidence Act Section 32) admits dying declarations as to the cause of death or circumstances of the transaction resulting in death; it is admissible even if the declarant was not expected to die.

BSA Section 103 (Evidence Act Section 101) places the burden of proof on the party who asserts a fact; Section 106 shifts it to the person with special knowledge.

BSA Section 45 (Evidence Act Section 45) expert opinion is relevant for foreign law, science, art, handwriting and finger impressions; Section 45A covers electronic evidence experts.

BSA Section 114 (Evidence Act Section 114) permits the court to presume existence of probable facts from the ordinary course of nature, human conduct, and the common course of business; Illustration (e) presumes due performance of official acts.

BSA Section 133 (Evidence Act Section 133) makes an accomplice a competent witness; conviction on the uncorroborated testimony of an accomplice is legal but unsafe as a rule of prudence.

Section 54 TPA: a sale of tangible immovable property of value one hundred rupees and upwards can be made only by a registered instrument; below that value, delivery of possession suffices.

Section 58 TPA: mortgage types are simple, conditional sale, usufructuary, English, and equitable; a mortgage by deposit of title deeds requires delivery of documents in a notified town.

Section 60 TPA: the mortgagor has a right of redemption, which can be extinguished only by act of parties or decree; the right cannot be clogged by contract.

Section 53A TPA: the doctrine of part performance protects a transferee in possession under a written and signed contract, provided he has performed or is willing to perform his part.

Section 106 TPA: lease of immovable property for agriculture or manufacturing is presumed yearly, and for other purposes monthly; notice to quit must be fifteen or thirty days as prescribed.

Section 108 TPA: rights and liabilities of lessor and lessee include the lessee's right to make necessary repairs, the lessor's duty to disclose latent defects, and the lessee's duty to restore possession.

Section 111 TPA: a lease determines by efflux of time, by the happening of an event, by merger, by forfeiture for breach of an express condition, or by surrender.

Easements Act Section 4: an easement is a right to a beneficial use of another's land for the enjoyment of one's own; it is a right in rem and cannot be a right to exclusive possession.

Easements Act Section 13: an easement may be acquired by grant, by prescription (twenty years), by necessity, or by quasi-easement; Section 15 provides the twenty-year prescription period.

Section 2(h) Contract Act: a contract is an agreement enforceable by law; Section 10 requires free consent, competent parties, lawful object and consideration, and no express bar.

Section 56: an agreement to do an act impossible in itself is void; the doctrine of frustration applies where performance becomes impossible or unlawful after the contract is made.

Section 73: damages for breach are the loss naturally arising in the usual course, or loss the parties knew of at the time of contracting; remote and indirect losses are excluded.

Section 74: where a sum is named as liquidated damages or penalty, the court may award reasonable compensation not exceeding the named sum, regardless of actual loss.

Section 16: undue influence requires a relationship where one party can dominate the will of the other, and the transaction is unconscionable; the burden then shifts to the dominant party.

Section 19A: a contract caused by fraud or misrepresentation is voidable at the option of the aggrieved party; the party must rescind within a reasonable time and restore benefits received.

Specific Relief Act Section 10: specific performance is the general rule for contracts, subject to Sections 11, 14 and 16; Section 14 lists contracts not specifically enforceable, such as those requiring personal skill.

Specific Relief Act Section 16(c): the plaintiff must plead and prove readiness and willingness to perform the contract from the date of the contract to the date of the decree.

Specific Relief Act Section 5: a person entitled to possession of specific immovable property may recover it by suit; Section 6 provides summary recovery within six months of dispossession.

HMA Section 5: conditions for a valid Hindu marriage include monogamy, sound mind, age (21 for the groom, 18 for the bride), and absence of prohibited relationship or sapinda relationship unless custom permits.

HMA Section 13: divorce grounds include adultery, cruelty, desertion for two years, conversion, unsound mind, leprosy, venereal disease, renunciation, and presumption of death after seven years' absence.

HMA Section 13B: mutual consent divorce requires separation for one year, mutual consent, and a second motion after six months; the Supreme Court may waive the cooling-off period (Amardeep Singh v. Harveen Kaur).

HMA Section 24: maintenance pendente lite and litigation expenses are awarded to the needy spouse; Section 25 provides permanent alimony and maintenance, which may be varied or rescinded.

Hindu Succession Act Section 6: daughters are coparceners by birth and have the same rights and liabilities as sons; the proviso protects dispositions or alienations made before 20 December 2004.

Hindu Succession Act Section 8: the property of a male Hindu dying intestate devolves first on Class I heirs (widow, sons, daughters, mother), then Class II, then agnates, then cognates.

Hindu Succession Act Section 14: property possessed by a female Hindu, whether acquired before or after the Act, is held as full owner and not as a limited owner.

Hindu Succession Act Section 15: the general order of succession for a female Hindu is sons and daughters (including children of predeceased children), then husband, then mother and father, then heirs of the husband.

Hindu Adoptions and Maintenance Act Section 6: a valid adoption requires the adoptive father or mother to have the capacity and the adoptee to be a Hindu; the adoptive mother must be at least twenty-one years older than the child in the case of a male child.

Registration Act Section 17: documents compulsorily registrable include instruments of gift of immovable property, non-testamentary instruments creating or declaring rights in immovable property of value one hundred rupees and upwards, and leases of one year or more.

Registration Act Section 49: an unregistered document affecting immovable property is inadmissible as evidence of the transaction, but may be used to prove part performance under Section 53A TPA or as evidence of an oral agreement.

Registration Act Section 60: the registering officer endorses a certificate of registration; the certificate is admissible as evidence of the facts stated and is presumed to be correct.

Indian Stamp Act Section 35: an instrument not duly stamped is inadmissible in evidence; the court may impound it and, on payment of duty and penalty, admit it in evidence in civil proceedings.

Stamp Act Section 47: the date of execution of an instrument is the date of execution by the first executant; the date of stamping is immaterial for the validity of the instrument if stamped before execution.

Limitation Act Section 3: a suit instituted after the prescribed period is dismissed even if limitation is not pleaded as a defence; the court has a duty to dismiss.

Limitation Act Section 5: an appeal or application may be admitted after the prescribed period if the appellant satisfies the court of sufficient cause for the delay.

Limitation Act Article 54: a suit for specific performance of a contract must be filed within three years from the date fixed for performance, or, if no date is fixed, from the date the plaintiff has notice of refusal.

Limitation Act Article 65: a suit for possession of immovable property or any interest therein based on title must be filed within twelve years from the date the possession of the defendant becomes adverse to the plaintiff.

Article 12 defines 'State' to include the Government and Parliament of India, state governments and legislatures, and all local or other authorities within India or under the control of the Government of India.

Article 13: laws inconsistent with fundamental rights are void; the doctrine of eclipse applies to pre-constitutional laws, and Article 13(4) protects constitutional amendments from challenge on fundamental rights grounds (Kesavananda Bharati).

Article 14: equality before the law and equal protection of the laws; reasonable classification is permitted if it has a rational nexus with the object sought to be achieved.

Article 21: the right to life and personal liberty includes the right to a fair trial, legal aid (Khatri v. State of Bihar), privacy (K.S. Puttaswamy), and a speedy trial (Hussainara Khatoon).

Article 32: the right to move the Supreme Court for enforcement of fundamental rights is itself a fundamental right; the Supreme Court may issue writs of habeas corpus, mandamus, prohibition, quo warranto and certiorari.

Article 226: High Courts may issue writs for enforcement of fundamental rights or for any other purpose, including legal rights; the power is wider than Article 32 but discretionary.

Article 141: the law declared by the Supreme Court is binding on all courts within India; Article 144 requires all authorities to act in aid of the Supreme Court.

Article 311: a civil servant cannot be dismissed or removed by an authority subordinate to the appointing authority, and cannot be dismissed without an inquiry and a reasonable opportunity of being heard.

Article 356: President's rule may be imposed if the constitutional machinery in a state fails; the proclamation must be approved by Parliament within two months and remains valid for six months at a time, up to three years.

Order VI Rule 2 CPC: every pleading must contain a statement of material facts, but not the evidence by which they are to be proved; legal arguments and conclusions should be avoided.

Order VI Rule 4: where fraud, misrepresentation, breach of trust, wilful default or undue influence is alleged, the pleading must set out full particulars of the alleged conduct.

Order VIII Rule 1: the defendant must file a written statement within thirty days of service of summons; the court may extend the time, but not ordinarily beyond ninety days from the date of service.

Order VIII Rule 5: every allegation of fact in the plaint, if not denied specifically or by necessary implication, is taken as admitted; evasive denial is treated as an admission.

Evidence appreciation: the testimony of a witness must be tested for consistency, corroboration, and the probability of the version; a mere conflict between ocular and medical evidence does not destroy the prosecution case if the ocular evidence is credible.

Judgment writing: a judgment must state the points for determination, the decision thereon, the reasons for the decision, and the relief granted; it must be self-contained and free from ambiguity.

Doctrine of res ipsa loquitur: the facts speak for themselves; the burden shifts to the defendant to explain the accident, but the doctrine does not dispense with the plaintiff's burden of proving negligence.

Hostile witness: a witness declared hostile under Section 154 of the Evidence Act (BSA Section 157) may be cross-examined by the party who called him; his evidence is not automatically discarded but is scrutinised with caution.

Circumstantial evidence: the circumstances must form a complete chain excluding every reasonable hypothesis of innocence (Sharad Birdhichand Sarda v. State of Maharashtra).

Landmark constitutional decisions to know: Kesavananda Bharati (basic structure, 1973), Maneka Gandhi (Article 21, 1978), Minerva Mills (1980), and K.S. Puttaswamy (privacy, 2017).

Criminal law landmarks: State of Haryana v. Bhajan Lal (quashing guidelines, 1992), D.K. Basu (arrest safeguards, 1997), Arnesh Kumar (arrest in cases under seven years, 2014), and Lalita Kumari (mandatory FIR, 2013).

Civil law landmarks: Salem Advocate Bar Association (case management, 2005), A. Shanmugam v. Ariya Kshatriya Rajakula Vamsathu Madalaya Nandhavana Paripalanai Sangam (specific performance, 2012), and Vidya Drolia (arbitrability, 2020).

New criminal codes effective 1 July 2024: Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (358 sections), Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (531 sections), and Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023 (170 sections) replaced the IPC, CrPC and Evidence Act.

BNSS introduces zero FIR, e-FIR for cognizable offences, mandatory videography of searches and seizures, and time-bound investigation and trial; Section 193 BNSS requires a preliminary inquiry for offences punishable with three to seven years.

Telangana formation: the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014 created Telangana as the 29th state on 2 June 2014, with Hyderabad as its capital for ten years.

Telangana State laws to know: Telangana Rights in Land and Pattadar Passbooks Act, 2020; Telangana Agricultural Land (Conversion for Non-Agricultural Purposes) Act, 2006; and the Telangana Prohibition of Cow Slaughter Act, 1977.

Telangana courts: the Telangana High Court was established on 1 January 2019; district courts follow the Telangana Civil Courts Act, 1972, and the Telangana Court Fees and Suits for Valuation Act, 1956.

Recent legal developments: the Mediation Act, 2023 promotes pre-litigation mediation; the Jan Vishwas Act, 2023 decriminalised several offences; and the Supreme Court's 2023-2024 rulings on electoral bonds (2024) and Article 370 (2023) are frequently tested.

Telangana Rights in Land and Pattadar Passbooks Act, 2020: provides for a conclusive title certificate and a digital record of rights; the pattadar passbook is evidence of title but not conclusive proof against a decree of a civil court.

Telangana Agricultural Land (Conversion for Non-Agricultural Purposes) Act, 2006: conversion of agricultural land to non-agricultural use requires permission from the competent authority and payment of conversion tax; unauthorised conversion attracts penalty.

Telangana Prohibition of Cow Slaughter Act, 1977: prohibits the slaughter of cows and calves; penalties include imprisonment and fine, and the Act is enforced by the police and animal husbandry authorities.

Telangana Court Fees and Suits for Valuation Act, 1956: court fee is computed ad valorem on the value of the subject matter, with specific provisions for suits for possession, declaration, and partition.

Telangana Civil Courts Act, 1972: establishes the hierarchy of District Courts, Senior Civil Judges, and Junior Civil Judges, and prescribes their pecuniary jurisdiction.

Telangana Land Revenue Act, 1317 Fasli: governs land revenue administration, survey and settlement, and the powers of revenue officers; it remains largely in force with amendments.

Telangana Municipalities Act, 2019 and the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation Act, 1955: govern municipal administration, building permissions, and property tax; appeals lie to the designated appellate authority and then to the government.

Telangana Registration and Stamps: the Telangana Stamp Act, 1922, read with the Indian Stamp Act, prescribes stamp duty on instruments; the Telangana Registration Act, 1908, applies with state amendments to registration fees and procedures.

Telangana Tenancy laws: the Telangana Tenancy and Agricultural Lands Act, 1950, protects tenants and regulates the surrender of tenancy; the Andhra Pradesh (Telangana Area) Tenancy and Agricultural Lands Act, 1950, applies to the Telangana region.