In Brief
Padia Timber Company (P) Ltd appealed against a judgment requiring it to pay damages to Visakhapatnam Port Trust for breach of a supply contract. The core dispute concerned whether the Company's conditional acceptance of the Port Trust's offer—proposing that security deposit be a condition subsequent rather than precedent—was a valid acceptance that formed a binding contract. The Supreme Court held that reading the letter of acceptance as a whole, the Company was not attempting a substantial variation of contract terms. Consequently, a valid contract existed, the Company was not in breach, and the appeal was allowed.
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