- (1.) THE present appeal has been filed by the appellants-original plaintiffs under Section 96 of the CPC being partly aggrieved by the judgment and decree dated 1.9.08 passed by the Addl. District & Sessions Judge, Fast Track No. 3, Ajmer, Camp Kishangarh, District Ajmer (hereinafter referred to as 'the trial court') in Civil Suit No. 56/07 (3/07), to the extent of not awarding interest on the decreetal amount of Rupees One lac.
(2.) THE dispute in the present appeal runs in a narrow compass. The appellants-plaintiffs had filed the suit before the trial court seeking recovery of Rs. 2 lacs against the respondent-defendant alleging interalia that an agreement to sell the suit land was executed between the parties on 18.12.05 for Rs. 17 lacs and the plaintiffs had paid Rs. 1 lac towards the part payment. According to the plaintiffs, the defendant did not fulfill the condition of the agreement and did not execute the sale-deed and, therefore, the plaintiffs were entitled to get back the amount of Rs. 2 lacs in place of Rs. 1 lac as per the condition mentioned in the agreement. Since the defendant did not pay the said amount, the plaintiffs had filed the suit for the recovery of Rs. 2 lacs with interest from the date of the suit till payment. The trial court after considering the evidence on record partly decreed the suit, directing the defendant to pay only Rs. One lac to the plaintiffs, and did not award any interest on the said amount, vide the impugned judgment and decree. Being partly aggrieved by the said judgment and decree to the extent of non-awarding of interest on the decreetal amount the present appeal has been filed. It has been submitted by the learned counsel for the appellants that the transaction being commercial transaction and the suit being for the refund of the earnest money, the plaintiffs were entitled to the interest on the decreetal amount from the date of the filing of the suit till realisation. However, the learned counsel for the respondent has submitted that there being no condition in the agreement for the payment of interest, the respondent is not liable to pay interest on the decreetal amount of Rupees One lac. Having regard to the submissions made by the learned counsels for the parties and to the impugned judgment passed by the trial court, it appears that the suit of the appellants-plaintiffs has been partly allowed by the trial court by directing the respondent-defendant to refund Rupees One lac which he had received towards the agreement in question executed by him in favour of the appellants. It is true that there was no condition for the payment of interest amount on the said amount received by the respondent from the appellants, however from the nature of transaction it appears that it was a commercial transaction and since the parties could not fulfill their respective obligations, the agreement could not be materialised. The appellants, therefore, have rightly claimed for refund of the money paid by them to the respondents and the trial court has rightly allowed the same while passing the decree in favour of the appellants-plaintiffs however the trial court did not allow the interest on the said decreetal amount. It is needless to say that under Section 34 of the CPC, where there is a decree for the payment of the money, the court is empowered to award interest at such rate as the court deems reasonable, to be paid on the principle sum adjudged from the date of the institution of the suit till the date of payment, though there was no agreement for payment of interest between the parties. Thus considering the nature of transaction, the trial court should have awarded interest at the reasonable rate on the principle sum adjudged by it. That having not been done, the present appeal deserves to be allowed. In the instant case, the respondent has already made payment of decreetal amount of Rupees One lac to the appellants on 22.3.10. The appellants, therefore, shall be entitled to the interest @ 9% per annum on the said amount of Rs. One lac from the date of the filing of the suit till the payment i.e. 22.3.10. The appeal, therefore, stands allowed accordingly. ;