NDLI: Ferrodous Estates (pvt.) Ltd. Vs. P. Gopirathnam (dead) & Ors.

Content Provider	Supreme Court of India
e-ISSN	30484839
Language	English
Access Restriction	NDLI
Subject Keyword	Scope of Specific Relief Act s.20 1963
Content Type	Text
Resource Type	Law Judgement
Jurisdiction	India
Act(s) Referred	Specific Relief Act, 1963 (47 of 1963)
Case(s) Referred	Referred Case 0 Referred Case 1 Referred Case 2
Case Type	Appeal
Court	Supreme Court of India
Disposal Nature	Appeal Allowed
Headnote	Specific Relief Act, 1963 – Agreement to sell entered intobetween appellant and defendants (represented by respondents) in1980 – Necessary permissions from the competent authority underthe 1978 Act (later repealed by 1999 Repeal Act) not obtained bythe defendants – Appellant filed suit for specific performance –Decreed by Single Judge – In first appeal, Division Bench referredthe matter to a Full Bench on various questions – Full Bench interalia holding that s.6, 1978 Act prohibited even agreements to sell,declared law inter-parties and the matter went back to DivisionBench – Division Bench remanded the matter to Single Judge whointer alia recorded a finding that the suit property stood as excesslands within the meaning of the 1978 Act before it was repealed –Matter returned to the Division Bench, which by applying the FullBench decision relating to the matter inter-parties vide the impugnedjudgment has reversed the judgment of the Single Judge – Onappeal, held: Agreement contained a specific clause in which itwas for the vendor to obtain permission from the competent authorityunder the 1978 Act – Thus, the agreement cannot be said to be hitby the decision of Full Bench judgment as the Full Bench itselfrecognised that there may be agreements with such clauses, in whichcase it is the Court’s duty to enforce such clause – Agreement to sellcannot be said to be void ab initio, as a result of which the basis ofthe Division Bench judgment under appeal goes – Further, on thedate on which the appellate decree was passed, the 1978 Act havingbeen repealed would not stand in the way of a decree for specificperformance – There is no vested right under the 1978 Act in favourof the respondents – Division Bench incorrect in stating that sincethe court process took 27 years to decide the specific performancesuit, it being a discretionary relief ought not to be granted – A suitfor specific performance filed within limitation cannot be dismissedon the sole ground of delay or laches – Appellant was ready andwilling throughout to perform its part of the bargain – Defendantstook up dishonest pleas and were in breach of a solemn agreementin which they were to obtain the Urban Land Ceiling permissionwhich, if not obtained, would, under the agreement itself, not standin the way of specific performance of the agreement between theparties – Division Bench judgment set aside – Decree passed bySingle Judge restored – Tamil Nadu Urban Land (Ceiling &Regulation) Act, 1978 – ss.4, 5(3), 6 – Tamil Nadu Urban Land(Ceiling & Regulation) Repeal Act, 1999.Specific Relief Act, 1963 – s.20 – Scope of – Held: s.20 priorto its substitution by the 2018 Amendment Act makes it clear thatthe jurisdiction to decree specific performance is discretionary –This discretion is not arbitrary but has to be exercised soundly andreasonably, guided by judicial principles, and capable of correctionby a court of appeal – Specific Relief (Amendment) Act, 2018.
Judge	Hon'ble Mr. Justice R.F. Nariman
Neutral Citation	2020 INSC 586
Petitioner	Ferrodous Estates (pvt.) Ltd.
Respondent	P. Gopirathnam (dead) & Ors.
SCR	[2020] 13 S.C.R. 673
Judgement Date	2020-10-12
Case Number	13516

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