Citation: Sheo Kumar Singh and Others v. M/s Sharda Educational Society and Others, Civil Appeal No. 12611 of 2026 (arising out of SLP (C) No… / 2025), decided by the Supreme Court of India on September 9, 2026, reported in 2026 INSC 1011
Court cannot reject a lawsuit at the very beginning under Order VII Rule 11 of the Civil Procedure Code simply because a document relied upon by the plaintiff is unregistered or allegedly inadmissible. Instead, questions regarding whether a document requires registration, whether it can be used for collateral purposes, or whether it is admissible in evidence must be examined and decided only during the regular trial after both sides are given an opportunity to present their evidence.
In 2011, the plaintiffs (appellants) rented out a plot of land to the defendants (respondents) through a registered lease deed for 33 years. Later, in 2013, the parties signed an unregistered supplementary lease deed to modify some terms so the defendants could secure a bank loan. When the defendants allegedly stopped paying the revised rent and refused to vacate, the plaintiffs served a termination notice and filed a lawsuit for eviction and unpaid rent.
In response, the defendants asked the court to throw out the lawsuit right at the start under Order VII Rule 11 CPC, arguing that the supplementary lease deed was unregistered and therefore legally inadmissible. While the trial court refused to throw out the suit, the High Court sided with the defendants and ordered a re-evaluation, leading the plaintiffs to appeal to the Supreme Court.
The Supreme Court held that the issue of whether a document is admissible in evidence due to a lack of registration cannot be used to throw out a lawsuit at the preliminary threshold stage under Order VII Rule 11 of the CPC. It ruled that questions of admissibility and registration must be examined during the regular trial after both parties are given the opportunity to present evidence, and that courts can only look at the face of the plaint and its attached documents when considering a rejection application.
