MULA AND OTHERS vs GODHU AND OTHERS

The Supreme Court held that the retrospective amendment to Section 31 of the Punjab Pre-emption Act, 1931, by Punjab Act 10 of 1960, deprived the appellants of their right to pre-emption, as it prohibited courts from passing decrees inconsistent with the amended Act. The Court found that the appellants could not secure a decree of pre-emption due to this amendment, despite having previously obtained a decree in their favor from the trial court. The appeal was dismissed, affirming the High Court's decision to reduce the deposit amount for the respondents.