In Brief
The plaintiff contracted to buy land from defendants for Rs. 90,000 in 1989, paid in full and took possession. Defendants later executed a gift deed to a third party to defeat the sale. The trial and appellate courts declared the gift deed void and granted specific performance. However, during the appeal, the land was compulsorily acquired. The High Court modified the decree to order only refund of Rs. 90,000. The Supreme Court held that under Section 21 of the Specific Relief Act, when performance becomes impossible through no fault of the plaintiff (here, land acquisition), the plaintiff is entitled to compensation from the land acquisition proceeds, not merely refund. The Court awarded the plaintiff Rs. 10 lakh from the acquired compensation.
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