DALBARA SINGH Vs. CHHAJA SINGH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The facts as enfolded in the plaint, briefly, are :- Defendant - respondent No. 1 (hereinafter referred to as the vendor) owned land measuring 91 Kanals 3 marlas situated in revenue estate of Sheikhan Majra (hereinafter referred to as the suit land); that the same was under mortgage with the plaintiff-appellants (hereinafter the plaintiffs); that the vendor entered into an agreement to sell dated 14/06/1972 with the plaintiffs regarding the land owned by him for Rs. 74,000; in that agreement, it was stipulated that the mortgage amount of Rs. 32,000 payable to the plaintiffs would be adjusted against the sale price, an amount of Rs. 25,500.00 was paid to the vendor in cash as earnest money by the plaintiffs at the time of the execution of the agreement to sell and the remaining amount of Rs. 16,500 was agreed to be paid at the time of registration of sale deed, which was to be done by 25/01/1973; that the plaintiffs filed Civil Suit No. 73 7/12/1972 against the vendor and some of the defendants for an injunction restraining them from transferring the land, the subject matter of the agreement to sell, to anybody else except the plaintiffs; that the suit was decreed on 1/03/1973; that the vendor in contravention of the agreement to sell dated 14/06/1972 and the Civil Court's decree passed in Civil Suit No. 73 7/03/1973 transferred the suit land to the defendant-respondents by sale deeds executed on 15/12/1972, Dec. 15, 197 2/03/1974 and Ma 27/03/1974; that on the strength of agreement to sell they were entitled to a decree for specific performance of the agreement to sell and, in the alternative, for recovery of Rs. 25,500.

(2.) The defendants denied the execution of agreement to sell dated 14/06/1972 in favour of the plaintiffs; that the plaintiffs with the help of Jarnail Singh, Dhera Singh and Ujagar Singh secured the thumb impression of Chhaja Singh vendor on several papers in the fields on 18/12/1972 and the agreement to sell might have been forged on those papers; that an FIR in this respect was also lodged at Police Station, Mubarakpur; that Narain Singh and Sardara Singh, plaintiffs Nos. 2 and 3 were arrested by the police in pursuance of the First Information Report; that a decree of injunction dated 1/03/1973 was obtained by the plaintiffs by misleading and coercing the vendor; that some of the defendants were parties to suit No. 737 instituted on 14/12/1972; that on the statement of the plaintiffs in that suit, they were dropped from the array of defendants and the consent decree was obtained against the vendor by misguiding him; that two sale deeds dated 15/12/1972 were executed by the vendor in favour of the defendants regarding one half of the suit land in pursuance of the agreement to sell dated 1/07/1972; that these sale deeds were registered on 12/03/1974 and Ma 13/03/1974 respectively; that thereafter the vendor entered into an agreement to sell dated 22/12/1972 regarding the remaining one half of the suit land with Ralla Singh and in pursuance thereto two sale deeds dated 28/03/1974 were executed in favour of the assignees of the vendee; that no consideration was paid to the vendor under the alleged agreement to sell dated 14/06/1972 in favour of the plaintiffs.

(3.) On the pleadings of the parties, the following issues were framed :-