Sections 101 and 102 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881: Contents of Protest and Notice of Protest
Sections 101 and 102 form part of Chapter IX of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881, dealing with noting and protest. Section 101 specifies what a protest under Section 100 must contain, while Section 102 governs notice when a promissory note or bill of exchange is required by law to be protested.
In brief: a protest is the formal certificate made by a notary public after dishonour is noted under Section 100. Section 101 prescribes its essential particulars. Where protest is legally required, Section 102 requires notice of protest instead of notice of dishonour, subject to the same manner and conditions.
Meaning of noting and protest under the NI Act
Section 99 - Noting: when a promissory note or bill of exchange is dishonoured by non-acceptance or non-payment, the holder may have the dishonour noted by a notary public on the instrument or on an attached paper. The noting must be made within a reasonable time and records the date of dishonour, the reason for dishonour or for treating the instrument as dishonoured, and the notary's charges.
Section 100 - Protest: after dishonour by non-acceptance or non-payment, the holder may, within a reasonable time, cause the dishonour to be noted and certified by a notary public. That certificate is called a protest. Section 100 also recognizes a protest for better security where the statutory conditions are satisfied.
Section 101 - Contents of protest
Section 101 lays down the mandatory particulars of a protest made under Section 100. The protest must contain the following:
- either the instrument itself, or a literal transcript of the instrument and of everything written or printed thereupon;
- the name of the person for whom and against whom the instrument has been protested;
- a statement that payment or acceptance, or better security, as the case may be, has been demanded of such person by the notary public; the terms of his answer, if any, or a statement that he gave no answer or that he could not be found;
- when the note or bill has been dishonoured, the place and time of dishonour, and, when better security has been refused, the place and time of refusal;
- the subscription of the notary public making the protest;
- in the event of an acceptance for honour or of a payment for honour, the name of the person by whom, of the person for whom, and the manner in which, such acceptance or payment was offered and effected.
A notary public may make the demand mentioned in clause (c) either in person or by his clerk or, where authorized by agreement or usage, by registered letter.
What Section 101 requires in practical terms
The provision is intended to make the protest a complete formal record of the instrument, the parties concerned, the demand made by or through the notary public, the response or absence of response, the circumstances of dishonour or refusal of better security, and the notary's authentication. Where acceptance or payment for honour is involved, the protest must also identify the relevant persons and record how the acceptance or payment was offered and effected.
Section 102 - Notice of protest
When a promissory note or bill of exchange is required by law to be protested, notice of such protest must be given instead of notice of dishonour, in the same manner and subject to the same conditions; but the notice may be given by the notary public who makes the protest.
Section 102 therefore substitutes notice of protest for the ordinary notice of dishonour in a case where the law requires protest. The manner and conditions governing notice remain those applicable to notice of dishonour, while the section expressly permits the notary public who makes the protest to give the notice.
How Sections 101 and 102 work together
The statutory sequence is straightforward. Dishonour may first be noted under Section 99. Under Section 100, the dishonour may then be formally certified by a notary public as a protest. Section 101 specifies the information that this formal protest must contain. If the instrument is one for which protest is required by law, Section 102 requires notice of that protest to be given instead of the ordinary notice of dishonour.
Statutory text checked against the official India Code version of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881.