Adverse Possession is “Admission + Denial + Animus”

Jojy George Koduvath

Characteristics of Indian law on Adverse Possession

  • 1. Actual dispossession of the true owner, coupled with the animus on the part of the claimant/trespasser to dispossess the true owner.
  • 2. The possession of the claimant/trespasser must be sufficiently ‘adverse’ to put the true owner on notice/knowledge of the nature of such possession—namely, that it is hostile to the true owner’s title.

Drastic changes

Substantially, the aforementioned general principles of law had been followed in India (under the Indian Limitation Act 1908) till 1963. Drastic changes were made to the law on Adverse Possession by the Indian Limitation Act, 1963. Article 65 introduced the following words to denote the starting point of limitation:

  • “when the possession of the defendant becomes adverse to the plaintiff“.

These words emphasise two distinctive, yet interrelated, key elements:

  • First, actual dispossession of the true owner, coupled with the animus on the part of the claimant/trespasser to dispossess the true owner and to possess the land as its owner; and
  • Second, knowledge of the true owner—the possession of the claimant must be open and hostile, and of such a character as to convey or impute knowledge of its adverse nature to the true owner.
T. Anjanappa v. Somalingappa, 2006-7 SCC 570,
P.T. Munichikkanna Reddy v. Revamma, 2007-6 SCC 59,
Uttam Chand v. Nathu Ram, 2020-11 SCC 263,
Govt of Kerala v. Joseph, AIR 2023 SC 3988.

Suit on Title – No Limitation Unless Defendant has Claim of Adverse Possession

  • No question of limitation arises unless the defendant substantiates his plea of adverse possession. This is because, after the significant change brought about by the Limitation Act, 1963, mere possession—however long—does not, by itself, become ‘adverse’.
Neelam Gupta v. Rajendra Kumar Gupta, AIR 2024 SC 5374,
Mallavva v. Kalsammanavara Kalamma, 2024 INSC 1021; 2024 KLT(Online) 3051,
K.J. Abraham v. Mariamma Itty, ILR 2016-3 Ker 98,
C. Natrajan v. Ashim Bai, AIR 2008 SC 363; 2007-14 SCC 183,
Indira v. Arumugam, AIR 1999 SC 1549,
C. Mohammad Yunus v. Syed Unnissa, AIR 1961 SC 808.

Adverse Possession Requires Both Admission of the True Owner’s Title and Hostile Denial of That Title

There will be no adverse possession unless the claimant admits the title of the true owner.

That is:

  • Adverse Possession = Admission of the True Owner’s Title + Possession Hostile to, and in Denial of, That Title, Coupled with the Animus to Hold the Property as His Own.
  • In short: Adverse Possession is “Admission + Denial & Dispossession + Animus.”
Shri Uttam Chand v. Nathu Ram, AIR 2020 SC 461; 2020-11 SCC 263,
Dagadabai v. Abbas @ Gulab Rustum Pinjari, 2017-13 SCC 705
Jagdish Sharma v. Tarun Gupta , SLP, Supreme(Online)(SC) 1473,
Michael v. The Midland Rubber Produce Co. Ltd, 2024 KER 76750
Kunhumol Simon v. State Of Kerala, 2026 KER 37238
Raghavan, v. Devayani, 2024 0 KER 17079; 2024-2 KHC 417.

Claimant to DENY the title of the true owner

M. Siddiq v. Suresh Das, 2020-1 SCC 1 (Ram Janmabhumi Temple case)
M. Radheyshyamlal v. V Sandhya, 2024 INSC 214,
Nand Ram v. Jagdish Prasad, AIR 2020 SC 1884; 2020-9 SCC 393,
Ravinder Kaur Grewal v. Manjit Kaur, (2019) 8 SCC 729,
T. Anjanappa v. Somalingappa, (2006) 7 SCC 570,
Karnataka Board of Wakf v. Government of India, (2004) 10 SCC 779,
Kurella Naga Druva Vudaya Bhaskara Rao v. Galla Jani Kamma, (2008) 15 SCC 150.
  • If one party to the suit (defendant or plaintiff) effectively pleads adverse possession (admitting the title of the other party), normally, the other party need not prove his title, for it can be taken as an ‘admitted fact’.

The “knowledge” required is ‘that which is brought to the true owner‘

The words in Article 65 — ‘when the possession of defendant becomes adverse to the plaintiff‘— necessarily imply or contemplate a “knowledge” on the part of the plaintiff. It is the ‘knowledge‘ that is –

  • acquired by the true owner, brought about by the claimant’s open and hostile acts asserting title.
T. Anjanappa v. Somalingappa, (2006) 7 SCC 570,
Hemaji Waghaji Jat v. Bhikhabhai Khengarbhai Harijan, 2009-16 SCC 517
Annakili v. A. Vedanayagam, AIR 2008SC 346; 2007 14 SCC 308,
Chatti Konati Rao v. Palle Venkata Subba Rao, 2010-14 SCC 316,
Read Also
•  Adverse Possession: A Concise Overview
•  What is Adverse Possession in Indian Law?
•  Adverse Possession: Dispossession and Knowledge
•  Adverse Possession: Admission of Title of Other Party
•  Ouster and Dispossession in Adverse Possession
•  Does ‘Abandonment’ a Recognised Right in Indian Law?
•   Illegal or Fraudulent Regn. of Deed: No Adverse Possession
•   Does 12 Years’ Unobstructed Possession Precede the Suit?
•   Prescriptive Rights – Is it Inchoate until Upheld by Court
•  Sec. 27, Limitation Act: Right to Declaration and Recovery
•  Declaration & Recovery: Art. 65, not Art. 58 Governs
•  ‘Possessory Title’ in Indian Law
•  Possession: a Substantive Right Protected in Indian Law
•  Recovery Based on Title and on Earlier Possession
•  ‘Possession is Good Against All But the True Owner’
•  When ‘Possession Follows Title’; ‘Title Follows Possession’
•  Can a Tenant Claim Adverse Possession
•  Adverse Possession Against Government
•  Is Registration of a Deed, Notice to Govt. and Public?
•  Government of Kerala v. Joseph
•  Adverse Possession: UK and US Law and Classic Decisions
•   22nd Law Commission  Report
•  How to Plead Adverse Possession? 

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