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2010 Supreme(AP) 1355

2011 (2) ALT 501
High Court of Andhra Pradesh
THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE GODA RAGHURAM & THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE N.R.L. NAGESWARA RAO
Suraneni Lakshmi
Versus
B. Venkata Durga Rao & Another
L.P.A. 230 OF 2000
Decided On: 31-12-2010

Advocates appeared:
For the Petitioner:Vedula Venkataramana, Advocate.
For the Respondents:N. Rama Sarma, Advocate.

Headnote:A) SPECIFIC RELIEF ACT, 1963, Sections 34 and 31:- Where suit for declaration is sought, separate prayer for cancellation of sale deed obtained by fraud or undue influence is not necessary, because while considering the prayer for declaration all incidental issues including the validity of the document will be taken into account. Moreover a sale deed issued out of fraud and undue coercion will be voidable and separate prayer to that effect is not necessary. (Para 14)

       B) SPECIFIC RELIEF ACT, 1963, Section 31:- Suit for cancellation of agreement can be filed in case void or voidable document. While in case of void document, he can ignore the document altogether. However in case of voidable documents, he shall file a suit for cancellation of the document. (Para 11)

       C) SPECIFIC RELIEF ACT, 1963, Section 34:- Where the suit for declaration of title which has the effect of cancellation of a document, it shall be filed within three years of executing a document as the limitation applicable in the case of a suit for cancellation of document.

       D) SPECIFIC RELIEF ACT, 1963, Section 34 :- Where the party filed a suit for declaration of title which has ancillary relief of cancellation of sale deed, the court has the power to grant the ancillary power to grant it. As the court fees is payable on both the case is on the market value, the suit is maintainable.

       E) SPECIFIC RELIEF ACT, 1963, Section 34:- Where on appreciation of evidence by the first appellate court, Single Judge of the High Court in the first appellate court on appreciation of evidence on record, it is found that the plea of fraud and coercion is not proved and the order of the trial court is rightly set aside in L.P.A. and suits were dismissed. (Para 20)

       F) CIVIL PROCEDURE CODE, 1908, Order 41 Rule 33:- Appellate court has wide powers of re-appreciation of evidence in a suit and reassess the suit. (Para 29)

JUDGMENT

(NRLN, J)

The wife of the deceased-first plaintiff who is the second plaintiff in O.S.No.191 of 1986 on the file of the court of Senior Civil Judge, Nuzvid, is the appellant herein. The suit was filed by the deceased-first plaintiff for declaration of his title to “A” &”B” schedule properties claiming that he has acquired those properties at different times from his earnings and also from the sale proceeds of the joint family lands. The allegations were made in the plaint that his second sister’s daughter was married to him in 1974 and sold away his ancestral house at Borragudem in 1975 and shifted his family to Chandragudem by the end of 1975-1976; he discontinued his self-cultivation and had leased out the properties to several persons. According to the plaintiff, apart from the leases given to others, in May 1976 the plaintiff leased out item Nos.6 to 8 of plaint “B” schedule properties to the second defendant on an annual lease of Rs.750/- for a period of two (2) years and the second defendant continued default and surrendered the land to the plaintiff in February-1978 and thereafter he gave the land on lease to Sri G.Sobhanadri.

2. It was further pleaded that in February-1977 he received balance of the sale consideration after the sale of the house and when plaintiff wanted to purchase land, the second defendant approached him and persuaded him and therefore he lent a sum of Rs.5,500/- and executed a promissory note in February,1977. The promissory note was scribed by one Kummarikunta Satyanarayana. The second defendant therefore was in arrears of lease amount and also the pronote debt. According to the case of the plaintiff, taking advantage of his weak and gullible nature, the second defendant and his son Venkateswara Rao took him to Vijayawada on the night of 05-04-1978 and confined him wrongfully in the house of one D.Bhadraiah and at about 9.00 A.M on 06-04-1998 the plaintiff was coerced to sign on some documents and when the plaintiff refused, the second defendant beat him with a stout stick, caused bleeding injury to his right knee and threatened. So the plaintiff contributed his signatures on 07-04-1978. The plaintiff was taken to Machilipatnam and got a document registered by coercion and threat of life in spite of objections by the plaintiff. Again the plaintiff was brought back to Vijayawada and confined in the house of one Bhadraiah by the acts of coercion and threat and on 29-05-1978 obtained signatures. On 30-05-1978 he was taken to Machilipatnam and in spite of protest another document was registered. It was further pleaded during the interval between the 07-04-1978 and 29-05-1978 the plaintiff was beaten and obtained pronotes including the one executed by the plaintiff in favour of the defendant, which was in the custody of one Shaik Amineebee of Chandragudem. It was further pleaded that without releasing the plaintiff, he was taken to Eluru and confined in the house of one S.Kanaka Rao for about a month and on 30-06-1978 the second defendant took the plaintiff from Eluru to Mylavaram and managed the police to obtain his signatures on some papers. Thereafter, the plaintiff was again brought back to Vijayawada and kept in the house of one D.Chinna Rao, and finally on 31-10-1978 the plaintiff managed to escape from the house of the said Chinna Rao. He made enquiries and came to know about the particular nature of the documents. According to the case of the plaintiff, the allegations of indebtedness mentioned in the earlier sale deed and passing of the cash consideration in, later sale deeds are all falsity. The plaintiff came to know that the documents are obtained in the name of his minor son-first defendant. The plaintiff challenged the validity of the said sale deeds and also claims to have cancelled the above two sale deeds on 03-11-1978 and informed the same to the defendant by sending the cancellation deeds. As the defendants are trying to cause interference with the possession and enjoyment,




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