Moneylenders Act, 1933

Application of Act as respects assignees.

23.—(1) Subject to the provisions of this section, the provisions of this Act shall continue to apply as respects any debt to a moneylender in respect of money lent by him after the commencement of this Act or in respect of interest on money so lent or of the benefit of any agreement made or security taken in respect of any such debt or interest, notwithstanding that the debt or the benefit of the agreement or security may have been assigned to any assignee, and, except where the context otherwise requires, references in this Act to a moneylender shall accordingly be construed as including any such assignee as aforesaid.

(2) Notwithstanding anything in this Act·—

(a) any agreement with, or security taken by, a moneylender in respect of money lent by him after the commencement of this Act shall be valid in favour of any bona fide assignee or holder for value without notice of any defect due to the operation of this Act and of any person deriving title under him; and

(b) any payment or transfer of money or property made bona fide by any person, whether acting in a fiduciary capacity or otherwise on the faith of the validity of any such, agreement or security without notice of any such defect shall, in favour of that person, be as valid as it would have been if the agreement or security had been valid; and

(c) the provisions of this Act relating to limitation of time for proceedings in respect of money lent by moneylenders, shall not apply to any proceedings in respect of any such agreement or security commenced by a bona fide assignee or holder for value without notice that the agreement or security was affected by the operation of this Act, or by any person deriving title under him;

but in every such case the moneylender shall be liable to indemnify the borrower, or any other person who is prejudiced by virtue of this section, and nothing in this proviso shall render valid an agreement or security in favour of, or apply to proceedings commenced by, an assignee or holder for value who is himself a moneylender.

(3) For the purposes of this Act and of the Moneylenders Act, 1900, the provisions of section 3 of the Conveyancing Act, 1882 , shall apply as if the expression “purchaser” in the said section included a person making any such payment or transfer as is mentioned in the last foregoing sub-section.

(4) Nothing in this section shall render valid for any purpose any agreement, security, or other transaction which would, apart from the provisions of this Act, have been void or unenforceable.