Benami Veil Cannot Be Lifted by Clever Drafting: SC Restores Rejection of Plaint at Threshold

Manjula And Others Vs D.A. Srinivas (Supreme Court of India) In a significant ruling on the scope of Order VII Rule 11 CPC and the Prohibition of Benami Property Transactions Act, 1988, the Supreme Court held that courts must undertake a meaningful and substantive reading of the plaint and cannot permit litigants to circumvent statutory bars through artful drafting. The dispute arose from a suit where the plaintiff claimed ownership over properties standing in another person’s name, asserting that the purchases were actually funded by him and later sought to be “restored” through a Will....