JUDGMENT :

L. S. PIRZADA, J.

1. The present appeal has been preferred by the appellant - original plaintiff under Section 96 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (for short ‘the Code’), challenging the Judgment and Decree dated 23.02.2024 passed by the 24th Additional Senior Civil Judge, Vadodara in Special Civil Suit No. 137 of 2022, whereby the application filed by the respective defendants at Exh. 13 under Order VII Rule 11 of the Code was allowed, and the plaint of the plaintiff was rejected.

2. For the sake of brevity, the parties are referred to as per their original status in the suit.

3. The factual matrix of the present appeal is that the original plaintiff, Mr.Dilipbhai Naranbhai Patel, filed Special Civil Suit No. 137 of 2022 against defendant Nos. 1 to 11 seeking specific performance of an agreement and cancellation of the sale deed dated 02.01.2021 executed by defendant Nos.1 to 9 in favour of defendant Nos.10 and 11.

3.1 As per the case of the original plaintiff before the trial Court, defendant Nos. 1 to 9 were the original owners of the land situated at Block/Survey No.607/A admeasuring 01-44-83 Hec-Arre-Sq.m. in Account No.39 of Village Sayajipura, Sub-Registrar District Vadodara.

3.2 It is the case of the plaintiff that defendant Nos. 1 to 9 intended to sell the said land, and the sale consideration was mutually agreed at the rate of Rs. 800 per Sq. ft. At the time of execution of a Token Agreement dated 05.02.2016, an amount of Rs. 4,00,000/- was paid to defendant Nos. 1 to 9, and subsequently, an additional amount of Rs. 4,00,000/- was paid, totaling Rs. 8,00,000/- towards part consideration.

3.3 Thereafter, it came to the knowledge of the plaintiff that defendant Nos. 1 to 9 had executed a sale deed dated 02.01.2021 in favour of defendant Nos. 10 and 11 in respect of the suit land. It is further stated that defendant Nos. 10 and 11 applied before the Collector for conversion of the land from agricultural to non-agricultural use; however, the same came to be rejected on 21.10.2020. Upon noticing of this, the plaintiff filed objections before the Collector’s office.

3.4 On the basis of the aforesaid facts and allegations, the original plaintiff instituted the suit seeking, inter alia, specific performance of the Token Agreement dated 05.02.2016 executed between the plaintiff and defendant Nos. 1 to 9, as well as cancellation of the sale deed dated 02.01.2021 executed by defendant Nos.1 to 9 in favour of defendant Nos. 10 and 11, along with other consequential reliefs. The said suit was registered as Special Civil Suit No. 137 of 2022.

3.5 Upon issuance of summons, the defendants appeared and filed an application below Exh. 13 under Order VII Rule 11(a) and (d) of the Code for rejection of the plaint. The said application was primarily based on the ground that the present plaintiff, along with one Mr. Rajesh Ambalal Patel, had earlier executed an agreement to sale dated 11.04.2016 in respect of the same suit land and had jointly filed Special Civil Suit No. 92 of 2018 before the Court of the learned Senior Civil Judge, Vadodara, seeking specific performance.

3.6 Subsequently, the dispute between the parties came to be amicably settled. In pursuance of the said settlement, the agreement to sale dated 11.04.2016, which was executed jointly by the present plaintiff and Mr. Rajesh Ambalal Patel with the original owners-defendant Nos. 1 to 9, was cancelled by executing a registered deed of cancellation dated 21.10.2020. Thereafter, the present plaintiff and the said Rajesh Ambalal Patel submitted a pursis in Special Civil Suit No. 92 of 2018 for unconditional withdrawal of the said suit. The said pursis was duly signed by both of them. Pursuant to the said pursis, the learned 19th Additional Senior Civil Judge, Vadodara passed an order, and the suit came to be disposed of as withdrawn unconditionally by order dated 07.11.2020 below Exh. 34.

3.7 It was stated in the application that the plaintiff had suppressed material facts