SANJAY KISHAN KAUL, J. - (1.) The plaintiff, a partnership firm, placed an order on defendant no.1 for supply of 800 metric tons of wheat flour for export to Dubai for which orders had been received at specific rates. The goods had to be supplied by defendant no.1 not later than 31.12.1996 and the quota in respect of the same was allocated to the plaintiff by Agricultural and Processed Food Products and Export Development Authority (APEDA) vide allotment letter dated 25.10.1996. It is the case of the plaintiff that defendant no.2, managing director of defendant no.1, had approached the plaintiff for making supply of goods on the assurance that defendant no.1 was in a position to do so. A request was made that at least 50 per cent of the value of the goods be paid to defendant no.1 in advance and accordingly plaintiff paid a sum of Rs 29 lakh to defendant no.1 by four bank drafts. It is stated that the orders were reduced into writing on 19.11.1996.
(2.) The plaintiff had to also give a bank guarantee in the sum of Rs 8.6 lakhs to the APEDA for allotment of the quota and supply of 35,000 empty plastic bags to defendant no.1 which were prepared and printed in the name of the plaintiff from Chandigarh for the purposes of packing wheat flour for export.
(3.) The grievance of the plaintiff is that nothing was supplied by the defendants causing loss to the plaintiff. The money of the plaintiff given to defendant no.1 as advance was lying with the defendants and plaintiff had also incurred expenses for the bags in which the flour had to be supplied. In fact subsequently a ban came into being with the result that the plaintiff could not supply the goods. The defendant no.1 refunded only an amount of Rs.9.00 lakhs.;