HARAMANI DEVI Vs. BALARAM PANDA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS is an application by the defendant -respondents under Article 133 of the Constitution read with Sections 109 and 110 of the Code of Civil Procedure, for leave to appeal to the Supreme Court against the reversing judgment of this Court decreeing the plaintiff's suit for specific performance of a contract to sell.

(2.) THE agreement to sell was dated 7 -12 -42 and the price fixed in the agreement for the properties to be sold was Rs. 9,500. The suit was valued, for purpose of court -fees and jurisdiction, at this sum of Rs. 9,500 in accordance with Section 7(x)(a) of the Court -fees Act. At the request of the petitioners the matter was referred to the trial Court for submitting a report about the market value of the properties covered by the contract for sale, both at the time the suit was filed and at the time of the appeal. The lower Court submitted its report, according to which, it valued the property at Rs. 18,500 by the date of institution of the suit and at Rs. 15,000 by the time of the decree of the High Court. There was no objection to the value as submitted by the learned Subordinate Judge.

(3.) BUT Mr. B. Mohapatra, the learned, counsel for the opposite parties strenuously contends that in suits for specific performance of a contract to sell, the Value of the subject -matter is the value for which the agreement to sell was executed and as the agreement to sell was for Rs. 9,000/ -, the value of the subject -matter is only Rs. 9,500/ - and consequently the petitioners are not entitled to leave to appeal to the Supreme Court.