Chapter XV - Of Bills in Sets
Section 132
Section 132: Bills drawn in a set
Section 132 allows a bill to be drawn in numbered parts forming one set, while addressing the risk of different parts being accepted or indorsed to different people.
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Need advice on Section 132?
This article is for general information. Refer to the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881 official text for the official provisions. If you need professional advice for your situation, contact Bizeneed.
Statutory text
Bare law
Bills of exchange may be drawn in parts, each part being numbered and containing a provision that it shall continue payable only so long as the others remain unpaid. All the parts together make a set; but the whole set constitutes only one bill, and is extinguished when one of the parts, if a separate bill, would be extinguished.
Exception.—When a person accepts or indorses different parts of the bill in favour of different persons, he and the subsequent endorsers of each part are liable on such part as if it were a separate bill.
Key rule and applicability
Each part is numbered and states the continued-payment condition linked to the other parts remaining unpaid. The set is one bill and the stated extinguishment rule prevents treating ordinary parts as independent duplicate debts.
Limits and related provisions
The exception matters: a person accepting or indorsing different parts to different people, and the subsequent endorsers of each part, have the specified separate-bill liability on those parts. Do not assume the one-bill rule removes that risk.
Hypothetical business example
Hypothetical: a trading business receives one numbered part of a bill set. It checks the set’s payment condition and whether different parts have been accepted or indorsed to other people before assessing its position.
Practical decision flow
Identify every available numbered part and its payment-condition wording.
Track payment and any event claimed to extinguish the bill.
Check whether different parts were accepted or indorsed in favour of different people and assess the exception.
Practical checklist
Do
- Identify every available numbered part and its payment-condition wording.
- Track payment and any event claimed to extinguish the bill.
- Check whether different parts were accepted or indorsed in favour of different people and assess the exception.
Avoid
- The exception matters: a person accepting or indorsing different parts to different people, and the subsequent endorsers of each part, have the specified separate-bill liability on those parts. Do not assume the one-bill rule removes that risk.
Glossary
- Set
- The collection of numbered parts constituting one bill.
- Separate-part liability
- The liability created by the stated different-recipient exception.
Frequently asked questions
Does each ordinary part automatically represent a separate bill?
No. The whole set constitutes one bill under the main rule.
What creates the stated exception?
A person accepting or indorsing different parts in favour of different people, with the stated consequences for that person and subsequent endorsers.
Must the parts contain a payment condition?
Yes. Each part contains the condition that it continues payable only while the others remain unpaid.
Need help applying this provision to your situation?
Contact BizeneedLast updated 10 October 2026