BALRAM RAOJI NASARE Vs. MAHADEO PANDUJI

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS is an appeal by defendant 1 in a suit for specific performance of an agreement contained in Ex. P-1. The main questions are whether this document is an agreement to sell or an agreement to lease and whether it requires registration. Important subsidiary questions, however, arise out of these two questions.

(2.) DEFENDANT 1 is the lambardar of Patti No. 1 in which the plaint fields are situate. The fields in question, two in number, are his sir fields. According to the plaintiff, defendant 1 agreed to sell these fields to him on 16th April 1942 under Ex.P-1. Later, in breach of this agreement, defendant 1 sold the fields to defendant 2. The plaintiff accordingly sues for specific performance.

(3.) ON the remaining question, the learned Judge of the lower appellate Court held that Ex.P-1 was an agreement to sell and not one to lease and therefore no registration was necessary. Accordingly he upheld the decree of the first Court which had granted specific performance.