The decree passed on terms of compromise valid whether all necessary parties not signed in the compromise petition?
In the case of Awadhesh Prasad Sharma vs. Prahlad Prasad Sharma and Ors. (AIR 2014 PATNA 239), The Patna High Court held that a compromise made between the parties to the suit could be covered under the provision of Order 23 Rule 3 of the Civil Procedure Code. But the parties to the suit must satisfy the Court that they are agreed for whole or any part of the suit adjusted by legal agreement. There is an explicit provision that the compromise petition must be in writing form and the parties must sign it. The compromise petition has no legal validity if not all signatory parties sign.
As per the provision of Order 23 Rule 3 of the Civil Procedure Code, 1908, in this case, it comes on record that the compromise petition which is produced in the case is not made lawfully—the compromise petition which presented to the Court all signatories parties to the suit not signed. The Court rightly observed and ruled that not all signatory parties signed the compromise petition. Such a petition cannot be considered legally, so the decree passed on the basis of that compromise petition is not proper in the eyes of law.
