Prohibition of Benami Property Transactions Act, 1988
Section 56: Repeal of Provisions of Certain Acts
Section 56 of the Prohibition of Benami Property Transactions Act, 1988 deals with the repeal of specified provisions in three earlier Central laws that dealt with benami or related property arrangements. The present provision forms part of Chapter VIII, "Miscellaneous", of the Act.
Current legal position: The statute is now titled the Prohibition of Benami Property Transactions Act, 1988. The extensive 2016 amendment renamed and substantially expanded the earlier Benami Transactions (Prohibition) Act, 1988. Section 56 appears in the present consolidated Act.
Text of Section 56
56. Repeal of provisions of certain Acts.
(1) Sections 81, 82 and 94 of the Indian Trusts Act, 1882, section 66 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 and section 281A of the Income-tax Act, 1961, are hereby repealed.
(2) For the removal of doubts, it is hereby declared that nothing in sub-section (1) shall affect the continued operation of section 281A of the Income-tax Act, 1961 in the State of Jammu and Kashmir.
What Section 56 Means
Section 56 is a repeal and transitional provision. Its function is to remove specified statutory provisions that historically dealt with beneficial ownership, purchases made in another person's name, or litigation concerning benami holdings, so that the special benami law governs the field subject to the scheme of the Act.
Sections 81, 82 and 94 of the Indian Trusts Act, 1882
Sections 81 and 82 were contained in Chapter IX of the Indian Trusts Act dealing with obligations in the nature of trusts. These provisions were associated with situations in which the beneficial interest was not intended to pass, or where consideration for a transfer was provided by a person other than the transferee. Section 94 was also part of the same chapter. The official consolidated Indian Trusts Act records these provisions as repealed in connection with the benami legislation.
Section 66 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908
Section 66 of the Code of Civil Procedure dealt with suits relating to purchases made on behalf of another person in execution sales. The current official text of the Code records Section 66 as repealed by the Benami Transactions (Prohibition) Act, 1988.
Section 281A of the Income-tax Act, 1961
Section 281A of the Income-tax Act dealt with suits and claims concerning property held benami. The current consolidated Income-tax Act records Section 281A as repealed. Section 56(2), however, continues to reproduce the statutory savings language concerning its operation in the former State of Jammu and Kashmir.
Note on Jammu and Kashmir: The wording of Section 56(2) remains in the consolidated text of the Act. Separately, the territorial provision in Section 1 was amended in 2019 by omitting the earlier exclusion relating to Jammu and Kashmir. Accordingly, Section 56(2) should be read as part of the historical statutory text together with later territorial and constitutional changes.
Why the Repeal Was Necessary
The repeal avoided overlapping legal regimes on benami ownership and related claims. Instead of leaving separate provisions scattered across the Indian Trusts Act, the Code of Civil Procedure and the Income-tax Act, Parliament placed the principal statutory treatment of benami property and transactions within the special benami legislation.
Practical Effect
A person examining a question involving alleged benami property should ordinarily refer to the definitions, prohibitions, attachment and adjudication provisions, confiscation provisions, appellate remedies, offences and other mechanisms contained in the Prohibition of Benami Property Transactions Act, 1988, rather than relying on the repealed provisions listed in Section 56.
Last reviewed: September 14, 2026.