Skip to content
Friday, 13 November 2026 Judgments, law jobs and study notes, written by a practising advocate
Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 · Order XXXVIII: Arrest And Attachment Before Judgment

Order XXXVIII Rule 5 CPC: Where defendant may be called upon to furnish security for production of property

Bare Act text

5. Where defendant may be called upon to furnish security for production of property.—(1) Where, at any stage of a suit, the Court is satisfied, by affidavit or otherwise, that the defendant, with intent to obstruct or delay the execution of any decree that may be passed against him,—

(a) is about to dispose of the whole or any part of his property, or

(b) is about to remove the whole or any part of his property from the local limits of the jurisdiction of the Court, the Court may direct the defendant, within a time to be fixed by it, either to furnish security, in such sum as may be specified in the order, to produce and place at the disposal of the Court, when required, the said property or the value of the same, or such portion thereof as may be sufficient to satisfy the decree, or to appear and show cause why he should not furnish security.

(2) The plaintiff shall, unless the Court otherwise directs, specify the property required to be attached and the estimated value thereof.

(3) The Court may also in the order direct the conditional attachment of the whole or any portion of the property so specified.

[(4) If an order of attachment is made without complying with the provisions of sub-rule (1) of this rule, such attachment shall be void.]

Amendment notes

  1. Ins. by Act 104 of 1976, s. 85 (w.e.f. 1-2-1977).

Text of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (Act No. 5 of 1908), First Schedule, as amended, including the changes for commercial disputes made by the Commercial Courts Act, 2015. Source: India Code, Government of India.

In simple words

At any stage of a suit, where the Court is satisfied by affidavit or otherwise that the defendant, intending to obstruct or delay execution of a decree, is about to dispose of or remove from the Court's jurisdiction any of his property, it may direct him within a fixed time to furnish security to produce the property or its value, or to show cause why he should not. Unless the Court directs otherwise, the plaintiff must specify the property and its estimated value. The Court may order conditional attachment. An attachment made without complying with sub-rule (1) is void, as the 1976 amendment provides.

Order XXXVIII: Arrest And Attachment Before Judgment

  1. 1 Where defendant may be called upon to furnish security for appearance
  2. 2 Security
  3. 3 Procedure on application by surety to be discharged
  4. 4 Procedure where defendant fails to furnish security or find fresh security
  5. 5 Where defendant may be called upon to furnish security for production of property
  6. 6 Attachment where cause not shown or security not furnished
  7. 7 Mode of making attachment
  8. 8 Adjudication of claim to property attached before judgment
  9. 9 Removal of attachment when security furnished or suit dismissed
  10. 10 Attachment before judgment not to affect rights of strangers, nor bar decree-holder from applying for sale
  11. 11 Property attached before judgment not to be re-attached in execution of decree
  12. 11A Provisions applicable to attachment
  13. 12 Agricultural produce not attachable before judgment
  14. 13 Small Cause Court not to attach immovable property
ShareWhatsAppTelegramLinkedInX