Law: Contract Act (IX of 1872)

Section: 55

Law: Specific Relief Act (I of 1877)

Section: 14

  (a) Contract Act (IX of 1872)-----S. 55-Time, originally not made essence of contract-Neither party has right to engraft same unilaterally by serving notice to other party-Sale of laid---Mere mention of specified period in agreement for completion of sale Does not make time, essence of contract.   In a contract, an intention, to make time of the essence of the contract, must be expressed in unmistakable language. It may be inferred from what passed between the parties before, but not after, the contract is made. That which is not of the essence of the original contract cannot be made so by the volition of one of the parties. In a contract of sale of land though the period is fixed by the contract for the completion of the sale, mere mention of the period does not make time of the essence of contract, the presumption, in such a case, is that the parties intended that the agreement should be performed within a reasonable time and that the fixing of the time limit in the agreement does not, by itself, rebut the presumption and lead to an inference that time was intended to be made of the essence of the contract. A party to an agreement has no right when time is not of the essence of the contract to fix a time by notice for performance unless there is some default or improper conduct on the part of the other party.   Where, therefore, time was not made of the essence of the contract in the original agreement, nor was it alleged to be so in the pleadings in suit subsequently instituted, nor were there any circumstances to warrant an inference that such was the intention of the parties and the plaintiff, one of the parties, rescinded the contract unilaterally by serving a notice to the other party even before the last date fixed by the contract had run out, it was held that time was not of the essence of contract and the plaintiff was not entitled to rescind the contract on that basis.   Abdul Hamid v. Abbas Bhai Abdul Hussain P L D 1962 S C 1; Jamshed Khodaram Irani v. Burjorji Dhunjibhai 43 I A 26; Green v. Sevin 13 Ch. D 589; Smith v. Hamilton (1951) 1 Ch. D 174 and Malik Ghulam Jilani v. Malik Munir Ahmad P L D 1960 Kar. 517 ref.   Mst.…