Prohibition of Benami Property Transactions Act, 1988
Section 63: Notice, etc. not to be invalid on certain grounds
Section 63 of the Prohibition of Benami Property Transactions Act, 1988 addresses the effect of a mistake, defect or omission in a notice, summons, order, document or other proceeding issued or taken under the Act.
Last reviewed: 14 September 2026
Text of Section 63
Section 63 - Notice, etc., not to be invalid on certain grounds. No notice, summons, order, document or other proceeding, furnished or made or issued or taken or purported to have been furnished or made or issued or taken in pursuance of any of the provisions of this Act shall be invalid, or shall be deemed to be invalid merely by reason of any mistake, defect or omission in the notice, summons, order, document or other proceeding if the notice, summons, order, document or other proceeding is in substance and effect in conformity with or according to the intent and purpose of this Act.
The official consolidated text is available through India Code - Prohibition of Benami Property Transactions Act, 1988 .
Meaning of Section 63
In simple terms, Section 63 is a saving provision. A proceeding under the PBPT Act does not become invalid merely because the relevant notice, summons, order, document or proceeding contains a mistake, defect or omission. The protection operates only where the document or proceeding remains, in substance and effect, in conformity with the intent and purpose of the Act.
The statutory test therefore focuses on substance as well as form. A minor defect does not by itself invalidate a proceeding when the proceeding still substantially complies with the Act.
What documents and proceedings are covered?
Section 63 expressly refers to the following:
- notice;
- summons;
- order;
- document; and
- other proceeding furnished, made, issued or taken under the Act.
The provision applies to an act done, or purported to be done, in pursuance of the PBPT Act. Whether a particular defect is protected by Section 63 depends upon the nature of the defect and whether the impugned notice, order, document or proceeding is still in substance and effect consistent with the Act.
Does Section 63 cure every defect?
No. The wording of Section 63 does not create an unlimited rule that every defective notice or proceeding is valid. The statutory protection is expressly conditional: the notice, summons, order, document or proceeding must be in substance and effect in conformity with, or according to, the intent and purpose of the PBPT Act.
Accordingly, Section 63 should be read according to its own language and in the context of the substantive and procedural requirement that is said to have been breached. A defect that changes the essential character of the statutory action may raise issues different from a merely clerical, formal or non-prejudicial error.
Relationship with the 2016 amendment
The Benami Transactions (Prohibition) Amendment Act, 2016 made extensive changes to the earlier Benami Transactions (Prohibition) Act, 1988 and renamed it as the Prohibition of Benami Property Transactions Act, 1988. The amended provisions and the Prohibition of Benami Property Transactions Rules, 2016 came into force on 1 November 2016.
For current legal reference, Section 63 should therefore be cited as Section 63 of the Prohibition of Benami Property Transactions Act, 1988, while the 2016 Amendment Act remains relevant to the legislative history of the provision.
Official resources
Related provisions
Section 63 forms part of the miscellaneous provisions of the PBPT Act. Readers may also refer to the immediately surrounding provisions dealing with offences by companies, protection of actions taken in good faith, transfer of pending cases and other consequential matters.