Chapter IV MISCELLANEOUS

1[51A. Bar of civil suits or proceedings.- Except as otherwise provided by this Act and notwithstanding anything contained in any other law, no Civil Court shall entertain or proceed with any suit or proceeding in respect of-

1. (i) any matter pending before the Court under this Act, or
2. (ii) the validity of any procedure or the legality of any award, order or decision of the Board established under section 4 of the repealed Act or of the Court, or
3. (iii) the recovery of any debt made payable under such award.]

In computing the period of limitation for the institution of any suit or proceeding in respect of any debt due from any person who is held not to be a debtor by the Court or the Court in appeal 1[or an application relating to which has been dismissed by the Court or the Court in appeal, the period during which the proceedings in respect of such debt ware prosecuted before the Court or the Court in appeal shall be excluded.]

1. (1) No person, who is 1[or was] a party to any proceedings or award under this Act and who is indebted to a resource society or any person authorised to advance loans under section 78 of the repealed Act or section 54 of this Act on account of any loan advanced to him for the financing of crops under the repealed Act or seasonal finance under this Act, shall hypothecate or sell the standing crops or the produce of his land without the previous permission of the society or of the person, as the case may be, until such loan has been repaid in full.
2. (2) Any person who hypothecates or sells the standing crop or the produce of his land in contravention of sub-section (1), shall on conviction, be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to six months or with fine which may extend to Rs. 500.
3. (3) No criminal Court shall take cognizance of any offence under this section except on the complaint in writing of the Court before which the proceedings were held or which made the award.

Power of 1[State] Government to authorize any person to advance loans to debtors.-

1. (1) The 2[State] Government 3[or any officer empowered by it] may by notification in the Official Gazette authorise in any local area any person to advance loans to debtors who are parties to any proceedings under this Act or in respect of whose debts an adjustment has been made under this Act.
2. (2) Such authority shall be granted on such conditions as may be prescribed.

1. (1) The 1[State] Government may by notification in the Official Gazette and subject to the condition of previous publication from time to time, make rules for carrying into effect the purposes of this Act.
2. (2) In particular and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing provision, such rules may be made for all or any of the following purposes, namely :-
   • (a) the purposes for which loans may be advanced under clause (13) of sub-section 2;
   • (b) the form of application under sub-section (2) of section 4 and the manner of signing, verification and presentation thereof;
   • (c) the form of application and the manner of signing and verification thereof under sub-section (2) and the manner of giving notice under sub-section (3) of section 8;
   • (d) the manner of giving notice and publication of general notice and the form of statement to be submitted under section 14;
   • (e) the inventories of property, lists of creditors and of debtors and of debts due to and from a debtor, the examination in respect of property or creditors, the time at which the debtor shall attend before the Court and do other things in relation to property under sub-section (1) of section 16, and the production of books of account, the examination to be submitted to, and the information to be supplied by a creditor in respect of the debt due to him by the debtor under sub-section (2) of section 16;
   • (f) the manner of determining the value of property and other assets under sub-section (1), and the manner of calculating the market value of the lands under sub-section (4), of section 29;
   • (g) the form of award under sub-section (2) of section 32 and sub-section (2) of section 33;
   • (h) the form of application under clause (i) of sub-section (3) of section 38;
     • (i) the manner in which property may be sold under section 41;
   • (j) the manner of recovery of Court-fees under sub-section (2) of section 44;
   • (k) the manner of service of notice under section 45; 2[(ka) the form of and the particulars to be included in the Register of Debt Adjustment Awards and the Index kept under section 46A;
   • (kb) the particulars to be included in the memorandum under section 46B;]
   • (l) the conditions on which authority to grant loans shall be granted under sub-section (2) of section 54.

1. (1) 1[Notwithstanding the repeal repeal of the Dekkhan Agriculturists' Relief Act, 1879 (XVII of 1879), by the Bombay Agricultural Debtors Relief Act, 1939 (Bom. XXVIII of 1939), the first mentioned Act shall, in so far as it applies to transactions and proceedings to which this Act does not apply, be deemed to have been re-enacted with effect from the date of the coming of into operation of this Act (hereinafter in this section referred to as the said date) and shall continue in force for a period of three years from the said date: Provided that any proceeding in or out of any suit instituted before the expiry of the said three years shall be continued and disposed of after the expiry of the said period, as if the Dekkhan Agriculturists, Relief Act, 1879 (XVII of 1879), had continued in force after the expiry of the said period:] 2[Provided also that] nothing in this sub-section shall be deemed to affect, in regard to persons who are debtors and in respect of whose debts an application under section 4 of this Act can be made, anything done in the course of any proceeding pending in any Court on the said date and any such proceeding may be continued, in so far as the continuance is not inconsistent with the provisions of this Act: Provided further that nothing in this sub-section shall in any way affect the transfer under section 19 of this Act of any suit or proceeding to which such debtor was a party.
2. (2) The Bombay Agricultural Debtors Relief Act, 1939 (Bom. XXVIII of 1939), is repealed. All Boards established under section 4 of the repealed Act shall be dissolved: 3[Provided that-
   • (a) all proceedings pending before any such Board at the date when this Act comes into force shall be continued and disposed of by the Court under this Act as if an application under section 4 had been made to the Court in respect therefor;
   • (b) all awards made, confirmed or modified under the repealed Act shall be deemed to have been made, confirmed or modified under this Act as if this Act was in force at the date when the said awards were made, confirmed or modified, as the case may be;
   • (c) all appeals pending before any Court under the repealed Act against the decision, order or award of such Board shall be continued and disposed of as if the said appeals were filed under the provisions of this Act; and
   • (d) all appeals which could have been filed under the repealed Act against any decision, order or award of such Board but which could not be filed only by reason of the fact that the said Act was repealed by this Act shall when filed before a competent court be deemed to have been filed under the provisions of this Act and shall be disposed of accordingly.]

1[57. 2[Special provision for application under section 4 in respect of debts due to creditor in merged territory].- (1) Notwithstanding anything contained in section 4 of this Act as amended by the provisions of the Bombay Merged States (Laws) Act, 1950 (Bom. IV of 1950), in its application to the merged territories-

1. (a) if any debtor was owing debts to a creditor in a merged territory on the date on which such territory merged with the 3[State] of Bombay and if the place in which such debtor was ordinarily residing on the said date was outside in such territory, such debtor, or
2. (b) his creditor may make an application to the Court under section 4 within six months from the date of the coming into operation of the Bombay Agricultural Debtors Relief (Amendment) Act, 1950 (Bom. XXXVII of 1950).

1. (2) Nothing in sub-section (1) shall entitle any debtor or creditor to make an application if prior to the date of the coming into operation of the said Bombay Agricultural Debtors Relief (Amendment) Act, 1950 (Bom. XXXVII of 1950), he could have made an application under section 4 of this Act: Provided that, if the debtor had in such territory on the date on which such territory merged with the 4[State] of Bombay any property against which the creditor could have enforced his remedy for the recovery of the debts due to him from such debtor under any law in force in such territory immediately before the said date, such debtor or his creditor shall be entitled to make an application under sub-section (1).

Notwithstanding anything contained in section 24 of this Act as amended by the Bombay Merged States (Laws) Act, 1950 (Bom. IV of 1950), in its application to the merged of territories, an agricultural labourer entitled to apply under section 24 for a declaration that a transfer of any land situate in any of the merged territories is a mortgage, may make an application under the said section within six months from the date of the coming into operation of the Bombay Agricultural Debtors) Relief (Amendment) Act, 1950 (Bom. XXXVII of 1950), to the Court of the Civil Judge (Senior Division having ordinary jurisdiction in the area in which such land is situate, and if there is no such Civil Judge to the Court of the Civil Judge (Junior Division) having jurisdiction in the said area].