BADRI SINGH Vs. SADAPHAL SINGH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The sole question for determination in this appeal is whether the Courts below were right in interpreting a certain document as a mortgage-deed.

(2.) The facts briefly are these: On 9 August 1865 the ancestor of the plaintiff- respondent, Sadaphal Singh, executed a sale-deed in favour of Bachchu Singh and Achraj Singh, ancestors of the defendants. The transferees did not obtain possession, and they had to bring a suit for recovery of it. In the suit a compromise was entered into though in the deed of compromise it was called only a deed of confession of judgment. This was on the 15 March 1867. The parties agreed to vary the original document which was one of out and out sale. They entered into certain terms, and the decree that was passed adopted those terms. The plaintiff's case is that the compromise coupled with the decree created a mortgage in favour of Bachchu Singh and Achraj Singh and that, therefore, the plaintiff was entitled to recover the property by way of redemption. He accordingly instituted the suit out of which this appeal has arisen. The Courts below decided in favour of the respondent 1; hence an appeal by some of the defendants. The appellants contention is that the compromise did not alter the character of the sale of 1865, but only gave the vendors a right to repurchase the property.

(3.) The question for determination in this appeal is whether the sale stands and the compromise gave only a right of repurchase, or whether the sale-deed was given up and in its place a mortgage by conditional sale was accepted by the parties.