LexALOKA BOSE versus PARMATMA DEVI & ORS.
Open in Lexace · Ask the AI about this caseJudgment (excerpt)
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[2008] 17 S.C.R. 822
ALOKA BOSE
v.
PARMATMA DEVI & ORS.
(Civil Appeal No. 6197 of 2000)
DECEMBER 17,2008
[R.V. RAVEENDRAN AND P. SATHASIVAM, JJ.]
Contract Act, 1872: s. 10 - Agreement Jo sell signed only
· by vendor an'd not by purch·aser -
Suit for specific
c performance ~ Maintainability of, challenged on the ground
that agreement was not valid/concluded - Held: Agreement
to sell signed by vendor alone and· delivered to purchaser,
and accepte<;f by purchaser was a valid contract - Moreover,
vendor acknowledged receipt.of earnest money and further
receipt of part of consideration amount - Evidence of
D witnesses also .show that it was concluded contract- Notice
by purcha$er conveying willingness and readiness to pay-
balance sale consideration - ·Plaintiff entitled to decree for
specific performance - Specific relief Act, 1963 - s.16(c).
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The appellant-defendants agreed to sell suit property
on 7 .9.1979 for a consideration of Rs.34,5001-.
Respondent-Plaintiff paid Rs.20011- as earnest money
and further sum of Rs.20001- on 10.10.1979 to plaintiff on
a condition that the sale deed would be executed within
three months and balance consideration would be pa{d
F at the time of execution of the sale deed. As th0e
defendant did not execute the sale deed, plaintiff
instituted suit tor specific performance. Trial court
decreed the suit, which was set aside by Single Judge
of High Court. On appeal, Division Bench of High Court
G restored the judgment of trial court.
In appeal to this Court, it was cofttended for the
appellant that the signature found in the agreement was
forged and in any event in the absence of signature of
the purchaser, an agreement to s.ale was neither
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822
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ALOKA BOSE v. PARMATMA DEVI & ORS.
823
complete nor a valid agreement and accordingly the
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plaintiff was not entitled to endorse the same; and that a
contract of. sale like any other contract is bilateral in
nature under which both vendor and purchaser have
rights and obligations.
Dismissing the appeal, the Court
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HELD: 1. There was no valid reason to disturb the
factual finding based on acceptable materials. The Single
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Judge of the High Court committed an error in taking a
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contrary view. [Para 4) [828-D]
2. All agreements of sale are bilateral contracts as c
promises are made by both - the vendor agreeing to sell
and the purchaser agreeing to purchase. An agreement
of sale comes into existence when the vendor agrees to
sell and the purchaser agrees to purchase, for an agreed
consideration on agreed terms. It can be oral. It can be
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by exchange of communications which may or may not
be signed. It may be by a single document signed by both
parties. It can also be by a document in two parts, each
party signing one copy and then exchanging the signed
copy as a consequence of which the purchaser has the
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copy signed by th~ vendor and a vendor has a copy
'signed by the purchaser. Or it can be by the vendor
executing the document and delivering it to the
purchaser who accepts it. 5.10 of the Contract Act, 1872
provides all agreements are contracts·-if they are made by
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· tfle free consent by the parties competent to contract, for
a la'l{ful consideration and with a lawfld object, and are
not expressly declared to be void. The proviso to s.10 of
the Act makes it clear that the section will not apply to
contracts which are required to be made;jn writing or in
the presence of witnesse~ or any law relating to G
registration of documents. Even an oral agreement to sell
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is valid. If so, a written agreement signed by one of the
parties, if it evidences such an oral agreement will also
be valid. In any agreement of sale, the terms are always
negotiated and thereafter reduced in the form of an
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824
SUPREME COURT REPORTS
[2008] 17 S.C.R.
A agreement of sale and signed by both parties or the
vendor alone (unless it is by a series of offers and
counter-offers by letters or other modes of recognized
communication). In India, an agreement of sale signed by
the vendor alone and delivered to the purchaser, and
8 accepted by the purchaser, has always been considered
to be a valid contract. In the event of breach by the
vendor, it can be specifically enforced by the purchaser.
There is, however, no practice of purchaser alone signing
an agreement of sale. [Para 7) [829-H; 830-A-G]
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3. The testimonium portion in the agreement in
question Excerpt shown. Read the full judgment & AI analysis in Lexace.