KALURAM Vs. GORDHAN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THESE are two connected appeals against the same judgment of the Dist. Judge of Chittorgarh. Appeal No. 72 is by Kalu Ram and his sons Nathu Lal & Mangi Lal, and raises the entire matter in this Court. Appeal No. 72 is by Magan Lal, and is only with respect to costs. We shall first deal with Appeal No. 72. The appellants of this appeal, namely, Kalu Ram, Nathu Lal and Mangi Lal, were plaintiffs in the trial court. They filed a suit for specific performance and injunction against Gordhan and Magan Lal. The suit related to a house which was the property of Gordhan. The case of the plaintiffs was that Gordhan had agreed to sell this house to them for Rs. 1,999/- and Rs. 650/- out of this amount had been paid at his instance to one Kan Mal already. Later, however, Gordhan changed his mind, and thereupon it was agreed between Gordhan and the plaintiffs that the house would be mortgaged to the plaintiffs for Rs. 1,450/ -. Gordhan also agreed that if he ever sold the house, he would sell it in the first instance to the plaintiffs at a price to be assessed by five panchas. After this agreement, a mortgage deed was executed on the 19th of June, 1946. On the same day a separate agreement, Ex. P. 3, was also executed incorporating the term as to the sale in favour of the plaintiffs. It so happened that a few months later, namely, in November, 1946, somebody made a report of lavarsi in connection with this house. Thereupon Gordhan asked the plaintiffs to take the sale of the house, and fight out the lavarsi proceedings. On this, another agreement was made between Gordhan and the plaintiffs on the 28th of January, 1947. By this agreement it was settled that the plaintiffs would purchase the house for Rs. 2,521/- minus the mortgage money and such sum as the plaintiffs might advance to Gordhan for fighting the lavarsi proceedings after those proceedings had terminated in favour of Gordhan. In the meantime, however, Gordhan had executed a sale deed on the 20th of January, 1947, in favour of Magan Lal for a sum of Rs. 2,499/ -. This sale deed was presented for registration on the 31st of January, 1947, by Magan Lal. On the 1st of February, 1947, the plaintiffs served a notice on Magan Lal, which he got on the 2nd of February, 1947. Thereafter, on the 23rd of February, 1947 the present suit was instituted by the plaintiff. We may add that the sale deed in favour of Magan Lal was registered on the 15th of July, 1947, after Magan Lal had filed a suit in that behalf.

(2.) MAGAN Lal's defence was very simple. He said that the alleged agreement of 19th of June, 1946, which was the sheet-anchor of the plaintiffs' case, was a fictitious document which was brought into existence sometime after the sale deed in his favour had been executed on the 20th of January, 1947, in order to defeat his rights under that deed. He also alleged collusion between Gordhan and the plaintiffs in this matter.