Duly stamped- duly stamped, as applied to an instrument, means that the instrument bears an

adhesive or impressed stamp of not less than the proper amount and that such stamp has been
affixed or used in accordance with the law for the time being in force in.1

Insufficiently stamped- the amount required to be paid up as a duty should be paid fully. If
paid less then it amounts to insufficiently stamped.

An instrument which is not duly stamped cannot be received in evidence by any

person who has authority to receive evidence, and it cannot be acted upon by that person or
by any public officer.

Section 35 provides that the admissibility of an instrument once admitted in evidence

shall not, except as provided in s. 61, be called in question at any stage of the same suit or
proceeding on the ground that the instrument has not been duly stamped. Relying upon the
difference in the phraseology between ss. 35 and 36 it was urged that an instrument which is
not duly stamped may be admitted in evidence on payment of duty and penalty, but it cannot
be acted upon because s. 35 operates as a bar to the admission in evidence of the instrument
not duly stamped as well as to its being acted upon, and the Legislature has by S. 36 in the
conditions set out therein removed the bar only against admission in evidence of the
instrument.2

Section 34, that an instrument shall not be admitted in evidence "unless such
instrument is duly stamped." Such a provision clearly imposes upon the Court the duty of
seeing in every case whether an instrument presented to it is 'duly stamped' or not. 'Duly
stamped' is defined in the Act to be "stamped in accordance with the law in force when such
instrument was executed, or first executed." When this instrument was executed, Act I of
1879 was in force. That Act, in Section 16, lays down that "all instruments chargeable
with duty and executed by any person in British India shall be stamped before or at the
time of execution." If an instrument is not so stamped, clearly it is not stamped according to
the Act, and cannot be held, therefore, to be 'duly stamped.' As it is the duty of the Court to
ascertain whether or not the instrument was stamped before or at the time of execution, I
allow the questions.3

From a plain reading of the aforesaid provision, it is evident that an authority toreceive
evidence shall not admit any instrument unless it is duly stamped. An instrument not duly
stamped shall be admitted in evidence on payment of the duty with which the same is
chargeable or in the case of an instrument insufficiently stamped, of the amount required to
make up such duty together with penalty.4

1
Sec 2(11), Indian Stamp Act, 1899
2
Hindustan Steel Ltd vs M/S. Dalip Construction Company
3
Jethibai Window vs Ramchandra Narottam, (1889) ILR 13 Bom 484
4
Omprakash v. Lakshminarayana and Ors. (2014)4W BLR(SC)31,