(a) Continuing tort:
Continuing tort means a wrongful act which produces a state of affairs, every moment’s continuance of which is a new wrong (i.e. which is a continuing source of injury) and is of such a nature as render the dose of it responsible for the continuance. Where the wrongful act does not produce such a state of affairs but is a fleeting act like a slander uttered or a slap on the cheek, it is not a continuing tort.
Disturbance of the right of worship is a continuous tort. Thus, where the plaintiffs (Digambar Jains) had been worshipping certain charans (foot-prints) on the Parasnath hill, but the defendants (Swetamber Jains) removed those charans and replaced them by charans of a different type abnoxious to the plaintiffs, – it was held that the action of the defendants was a continuing wrong (tort) in respect of which a fresh period of limitation began to run every moment of the day on which the wrong continued. (Rao Raja Sir Seth Hukum Chand v. Maharaj Bahadur Singh, A.I.R. 1933 P.C. 193).
ADVERTISEMENTS:
A husband or wife has a right to the society of his or her spouse. The duty of the latter is a continuing duty inasmuch as it a duty to continue to give society. A breach of this obligation is a continuing tort within the meaning of this section and time will begin to run at every moment of the time during which the society is withheld.
(b) Continuing breach of contract:
Continuing breach of contract is the breach of a contract which obliges a party to it (contract) to adopt a course or action during the continence of the relation governed by the contract. For instance, A lets out his house to B under a lease that B shall, during the continuance of his tenancy keep the house in best tenantable repairs. B neglects to repair the house.
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This is an example of continuing breach of contract and every moment during which disrepair continues the right of A to sue receives a fresh period of limitation. If, on the other hand, the obligation under a contract is to do a specific act at stated times such as paying the rent every quarter and the party under a duty to do the act fails to do it, the breach is not a continuing breach but a successive breach.
In the case of continuing wrong, limitation begins to run at every moment of the time during which the wrong continues. In such a case the starting point of limitation is the date of cessation of the wrong. In the case of continuing breach of contract, a fresh right to sue arises every moment during which the breach continues. The starting point of limitation is the time when the breach ceases to exist.