In Brief
The plaintiff purchased land under an agreement to sell dated 7 May 1981 and was put in possession. Land acquisition proceedings were initiated, but the plaintiff challenged and successfully set them aside in 1984–85. He then demanded the sale deed, but the vendor's widow (who had inherited the property) and a subsequent purchaser refused. The Supreme Court held that Article 113 of the Limitation Act applied: the right to sue arose only when the acquisition dispute was settled and the vendor refused performance (January 1986), so the suit filed in April 1986 was within the three-year limitation period. The Court decreed specific performance, directing the plaintiff to pay ₹15 lakhs (adjusted for inflation) within eight weeks, after which the defendants must execute the sale deed.
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