In Brief
Satish Kumar sought specific performance of an agreement to purchase a Delhi Development Authority (DDA) plot from Karan Singh for Rs. 4.6 lakh, dated 6 January 1995. Both the trial court and High Court decreed specific performance. However, the Supreme Court reversed both orders, holding that specific performance cannot be granted where the underlying contract is defective or unenforceable. The Court noted that the DDA had made the plot non-transferable for ten years—a material defect that rendered the contract unenforceable. The Court emphasised that judges possess discretion to grant specific performance only when a valid, enforceable contract exists; absent such a contract, courts cannot create one for the parties.
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