#THE INDIAN SOLDIERS (LITIGATION) ACT, 1925 

**(Modified as on – 19th November, 2018)**
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##ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS 
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SECTIONS 

1. Short title, extent and commencement. 
2. Definitions. 
3. Circumstances in which an Indian soldier shall be deemed to be serving under special conditions. 
4. Particulars to be furnished in plaints, applications or appeals to Court. 
5. Power of Collector to intervene in case of unrepresented Indian soldier. 
6. Notice to be given in case of unrepresented Indian soldier. 
7. Postponement of proceedings.
8. Court may proceed when no certificate received. 
9. Postponement of proceedings against Indian soldier on leave. 
10. Power to set aside decrees and orders, passed against an Indian soldier serving under war or 
  special conditions. 
11. Modification of law of limitation where Indian soldier or his legal representative is a party. 
12. Power of Court to refer questions to prescribed authorities. 
13. Rule making power. 
14. Power to apply the provisions of the Act to other persons in the service of the Government. 
14A. [Repealed.]. 
15. [Repealed.]. 



#THE INDIAN SOLDIERS (LITIGATION) ACT, 1925 

##ACT NO. 4 OF 1925

[26th February, 1925.] 

An Act to consolidate and amend the law to provide for the special protection in respect of civil 
  and revenue litigation of Indian soldiers serving under special conditions. 

  WHEREAS it is expedient to consolidate and amend the law to provide for the special protection in 
respect  of  civil  and  revenue  litigation  of  Indian  soldiers  serving  under  special  conditions;  It  is  hereby 
enacted as follows: — 

1. **Short title, extent and commencement.**—(1)  This  Act  may  be  called  the  Indian  Soldiers 
(Litigation) Act, 1925. 

(2) It extends to the whole of India.

(3) It shall come into force on the first day of April, 1925. 

2. **Definitions.**—In this Act, unless there is anything repugnant in the subject or context, — 

  (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 the Army Act, 1950 (46 of 1950), or the Air 
Force Act, 1950 (45 of 1950), or the Navy Act, 1957 (62 of 1957); 

  (c) “prescribed” means prescribed by rules made under this Act; and 

  (d) “proceeding” includes any suit, appeal or application; 

  (e) any  reference  to  a  decree  or  order  of  a  Court  shall  be  deemed  to  include  a  reference  to  a 
judgment, determination or award of a Court.

3. **Circumstances  in  which  an  Indian  soldier  shall  be  deemed  to  be  serving  under  special 
conditions.**—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 beyond India or at 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 Central Government by notification in the Official Gazette to constitute a 
state of war for the purposes 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, 

     (iii) serving with any unit which is for the time being mobilised, or 

     (iv) serving under conditions which, in the opinion of the prescribed authority, preclude him 
from obtaining leave of absence to enable him to attend a Court as a party to any proceeding, or 
when he is or has been at any other time serving under conditions service under which has been 
declared  by  the  Central  Government  by  notification  in  the  Official  Gazette  to  be  service  under 
war conditions; and 

  (c) overseas—when he is or has been serving in any place outside India (other than Ceylon) the 
journey between which and India is ordinarily undertaken wholly or in part by sea. 

*Explanation.*—For the purposes of this section and with effect from the 3rd day of September, 1939, 
1939, a soldier who is or has been a prisoner of war shall be deemed to be or to have been serving under 
war conditions.

4. **Particulars to be furnished in plaints, applications or appeals to Court.**—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. 

5. **Power of Collector to intervene in case of unrepresented Indian soldier.**—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. 

6. **Notice to be given in case of unrepresented Indian soldier.**— (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 the 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  those  of  any  other  party  to  the  proceeding  and  adequately  represented  by  such  other  party  or 
merely of a formal nature. 

(2) If it appears to the Court before which any proceeding is pending that an Indian soldier though 
not  a  party  to  the  proceeding  is  materially  concerned  in  the  outcome  of  the  proceeding  and  that  his 
interests are likely to be prejudiced by his inability to attend, the Court may suspend the proceeding and 
shall give notice thereof in the prescribed manner to the prescribed authority.

7. **Postponement of proceedings.**—  If,  on  receipt  of  a  notice  under  section  6,  the  prescribed 
authority  certifies  in  the  prescribed  manner  to  the  Court  in  which  the  proceeding  is  pending  that  the 
soldier  in  respect  of  whom  the  notice  was  given  is  serving  under  special  conditions,  and  that  a 
postponement of the proceeding in respect of the soldier is necessary, in the interests 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. 

8. **Court may proceed when no certificate received.**— If, after issue of a 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. 

9. **Postponement of proceedings against Indian soldier on leave.**—  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 proceed 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  is  referred  to  in  the  proviso  to 
sub-section (1) of section 6 and  shall,  in  any  other  case,  be  postponed in the manner provided in 
section 7. 

10. **Power to set aside decrees and orders, passed against an Indian soldier serving under war or 
special conditions.**—(1)  In  any  proceeding  before a  Court  in  which  a decree or  order  has  been  passed 
against any Indian soldier whilst he was serving under any special conditions, the soldier 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. 

(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 not duly served on the soldier in the 
proceeding in which the decree or order was passed, from the date on which the applicant had knowledge 
of  the  decree  or  order;  and  the  provisions of section 5 of the Indian Limitation Act, 1908 
(9 of 1908) shall apply to such applications.

(3) When the decree or order in respect of which an application under sub-section (1) is made is of 
such a nature that it cannot be set aside as against the soldier only, it may be set aside as against all or any 
of the parties against whom it has been made. 

(4) Where a Court sets aside a decree or order under this section, it shall appoint a day for proceeding 
with the suit, appeal or application, as the case may be. 

11. **Modification  of  law  of  limitation  where  Indian  soldier  or  his  legal  representative  is  a 
party.**—In computing the period of limitation prescribed by sub-section (2) of section 10 of this Act, the 
Indian Limitation Act, 1908 (9 of 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 except where the said right accrues in such 
circumstances, and is in respect of agricultural land and village immovable property situated in any such 
area as the Central Government may, by notification in the official Gazette, specify in this behalf. 

12. **Power of Court to refer questions to prescribed authorities.**—  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.

13. **Rule making power.** — (1) The Central Government may, by notification in the 
Official Gazette make ruless 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 purposes 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. 

(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 in session, for a total period of thirty days which may be comprised in 
one session or in two or more successive sessions, and if, before the expiry of the session immediately 
following the session or the successive sessions aforesaid, both Houses agree in making any modification 
in the rule or both Houses agree that the rule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effect only 
in such modified form or be of no effect, as the case may be; so, however, that any such modification or 
annulment shall be without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under that rule.

14. **Power  to  apply  the  provisions  of  the  Act  to  other  persons  in  the  service  of  the 
Government.** — (1) As respects the State Public Services, the State Government, and in other cases, 
the Central Government may,  by  notification  in  the  Official  Gazette,  direct  that  all  or  any  of  the 
provisions of this Act shall apply to any other class of persons in the service of Government specified in 
such notification in the same, manner as they apply to Indian soldiers, 

(2) Where, under this section, the State Government has directed that all or any of the provisions of 
this Act shall apply to any class of persons in the service of Government, the powers vested in the Central 
Government  by  section  3  and  section  13  shall  be  exercised  in  respect  of  that  class  of  persons  by  the 
State Government.

14A. *[Power to apply the provisions of the Act to members of the forces maintained by any Part B 
State.] Rep. by the Adaptation of Laws* (No. 3) *Order*, 1956. 

15. *[Repeal of Acts IX of 1918 and XII of 1924.] Rep. by the Repealing Act,* 1927 (12 of 1927), s. 2 
*and the Sch.*