By S&S Co. Advocates & Solicitors · Published 9 May 2026 · Informational content, not legal advice
About this article: A general explainer prepared by S&S Co. Advocates & Solicitors on a recurring type of dispute. It does not report a specific judgment or order, names no parties and gives no case citation, so it should not be cited as authority. Law and practice change; please verify against the current statute and primary sources before relying on it.
Obtaining a decree for possession of immovable property is often only the first stage. Execution frequently meets resistance, particularly from persons other than the judgment-debtor who claim to be in possession in their own right, such as a tenant, a purchaser or a family member. The Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 deals with this in Order XXI Rules 97 to 103.
A decree-holder who is resisted or obstructed can apply to the executing court under Rule 97. Under Rule 101, questions relating to right, title or interest in the property arising between the parties to the application, including those raised by a resisting third party, are to be decided by the executing court in the execution proceedings and not by a separate suit. The court is therefore expected to hear a person who genuinely claims an independent right before directing delivery of possession against them.
The procedure is not meant to be used to delay execution. A claim that is frivolous or collusive can be rejected after a genuine inquiry, and the Code also deals with transferees who acquire the property during the suit. Rule 102 says that the protection of these rules does not extend to a person who got the property from the judgment-debtor after the suit began.