Summary of background -

1 . In the Asia-Pacific area, Zindia is one of the largest countries. Since 1947, when it gained
independence from colonial authority, it has been a federal democracy with a bicameral legislature.
It is the world's second most populous country. It is the world's youngest country. Zindia had a closed
economy until 1991. Only after the 1991 Economic Reforms did the country open its trade barriers
and become an international trade and commerce centre. Many foreign investors came to the
country because of its large population and enormous shore lines on the eastern and western
borders. .

Despite numerous measures aimed at improving the country's economy, development was modest
until the early 2000s. In 2014, the administration of Zindia launched an export-promotion strategy, as
a result of which the country's economy grew at an exponential rate. Zindia has a gigantic GDP of 3
trillion USD dollars in 2020, according to economic data . To meet ever-increasing industrial and
domestic demands, Zindia must import oil. Zindia now imports 82 percent of its oil, but hopes to
reduce that to 67 percent by 2022 by replacing it with indigenous exploration, renewable energy, and
other sources. In 2019, Zindia was the world's second-largest net crude oil (including crude oil
products) importer, with 205.3 Mt.

Summary of facts -

- Mr. Vivian is a well-known businessman who hails from the Zindia town of Gokaro. He deals in oil in
the city and follows through on all of his business promises. Mr. Vivian used to buy oil from outside
India, primarily from Bugosulovia, where he had many relationships. He's been in this industry for
around 8 years and makes a decent monthly profit. Mr. Zaheer comes from the state of Badhya
Pradesh in Zndia. Mr. Zaheer is a businessman who makes money by buying oil at a lower price and
selling it to a third party for a higher price. He began assisting his father in running their family
business around four and a half years ago. Mr. Vivian signed a deal with Mr. Zaheer in Badhya
Pradesh, agreeing to supply Mr. Zaheer with 5 tonnes of Tesame oil, a specialist type of oil, at the
current market rate. Mr. Zaheer said in his contract that he requires 100 percent pure oil.
Mr. Yakub's carrier company, "Knight Transportation Services," was meant to make the delivery in the
city of Ghopal in Badhya Pradesh. Mr. Yakub operates from a Gokaro office. Knight Transportation
Services was established in 2015 and offers a variety of transportation options, including air, marine,
land transportation, including rails and railways, as well as road and off-road transportation.

- Mr. Yakub's carrier company is an excellent service provider that provides transportation services
to its customers by appointing a number of trustworthy individuals to move items safely from one
location to another. The deadline for supplying the oil was set for March 8, 2020, and Mr. Zaheer
made it clear that Mr. Vivian needed to do it quickly. Mr. Zaheer, on the other hand, has not
threatened Mr. Vivian with the actual rationale for such a deadline. Mr. Zaheer was required to
deliver it to Mr. Anand, who in turn utilised it to generate energy in the town of Boregaon. Boregaon
is a city that is always in desperate need of electricity and Mr. Anand relied on Mr. Zaheer to provide
it. These two were under contract for a two-year period.

Summary of Global Pandemic

- However, in February 2020, a lethal virus was discovered in Whina, a neighbouring country to Zindia.
The virus infects the patients' respiratory tracts and can be transmitted from person to person
through personal contact. Some speculated that it was conveyed through the air. COVID-19 was the
name given to the virus, which spread throughout Whina, Zindia, and other regions of the world,
killing millions of people. This virus caused major disruptions in country imports and exports, as well
as oil procurement from outside of Zindia. Mr. Vivian needed clearances from various administrative
personnel of other states to pass checkpoints across borders in order to purchase oil from states
outside of Zindia. Oil procurement has become more time demanding.
- Mr. Vivian recently read in the publication "Nimes of Zindia" about some scientific discoveries of
Tesame oil that occurred in a little town called Bagasthan in Zindia. The oil was recovered from the oil
fields and checked for purity, which came back as 100 percent pure. Mr. Vivian, on the other hand,
has already made an order with several Bugosulovia suppliers. Furthermore, because the find was so
new, the oil accessible in Bagasthan was at an expensive price. As a result, Mr. Vivian carried out
Bugosulovia's commands. Mr. Vivian had obtained permission to transport the oil from the state of
Badhya Pradesh and the city of Gokaro. Mr. Zaheer has made an advance payment to Mr. Vivian via
the "GHIM" app (an online payment app), which equates to one-fourth of the payment due on
February 12, 2020.

- Vivian was only able to obtain 3 tonnes of oil due to the difficulty in obtaining it due to the
aforementioned epidemic. Mr. Vivian worked out a deal with Mr. Yakub to get the oil to Mr. Zaheer.
Mr. Yakub was a well-known carrier who specialised in transporting combustible and dangerous
materials from one location to another. Mr. Yakub delegated this responsibility to his truck driver, Mr.
Karan, who was to deliver the oil to Mr. Zaheer on Monday, March 8th. Mr. Zaheer was supposed to
pay the truck driver's charges when he arrived at his destination, as long as the goods were delivered
properly. At 8:07 a.m., the truck loaded up with tonnes of oil and set out from Gokaro city. Mr. Vivian
provided the oil to the truck driver along with an instruction manual that detailed the circumstances
in which the oil must be stored in order to avoid any type of explosion.

- Vivian also tried to call Zaheer to advise him that he was sending the part shipment on the 8th of
March and to explain that obtaining the oil was extremely difficult, but Zaheer did not respond. Mr.
Vivian made many phone calls and left a message for Mr. Zaheer, but he did not answer. Mr. Zaheer,
on the other hand, made no attempt to enquire about the status of the supply from Mr. Vivian. Karan
got stopped in a traffic jam near the target city of Badhya Pradesh in an area named Kandhiwala
around 3:07 pm in the afternoon. The traffic bottleneck was caused by labourers' ongoing
demonstrations against the Company for decreasing their wages during such times of difficulty, i.e., in
times of covid. The truck driver, Karan, got out of the truck and went to get some liquor .

- When he returned at 3:38 p.m., the truck was parked on the wrong side of the road, causing the
traffic jam to intensify. As a result, the protestors began arguing with the truck driver Karan, who in
turn screamed profanity at them, resulting in a fight. The time was 4:45 p.m.The situation worsened
and a fire broke out; the driver attempted but failed to extinguish the fire, resulting in the complete
destruction of the oil and, sadly, the supply being disrupted. The cause of the fire is unknown; it could
have been ignited by the truck driver or the protestors individually or jointly. Based on the evidence,
the cause of the fire cannot be identified.

- The driver told Mr. Yakub about the incident as soon as it occurred, and Mr. Yakub in turn alerted
Mr. Vivian about the mishap that occurred through no fault of their own. It should be emphasised
that Mr. Vivian was well aware that the oil temperature had to be maintained at 42 degrees Celsius,
but he did not directly inform the truck driver Karan, despite the fact that everything was detailed in
the manual handed to him. Mr. Zaheer called Mr. Vivian's employers and advised them not to trade
with him because he is "very unprofessional and breaches his obligations." Mr. Zaheer also declared
in a daily newspaper called "Saral Ujala," which was published in the name of the news editor "Ram
Prasad," that "Mr. Zaheer is a better businessman than Mr. Vivian, and that people should trade with
him instead because he follows all of his business promises." Mr. Zaheer also phoned Mr. Vivian's
business associates and told them the same things in a humorous manner that had a sting to it, but it
was not for merriment's sake.

- Mr. Zaheer did this with the goal of protecting the interests of other businesspeople so that they do
not suffer the same losses he suffered. Zaheer then urged Vivian to fulfil his contract obligations, but
Vivian refused, claiming that he had delivered the oil on schedule and that he had nothing else to do.
Mr. Vivian claimed that it was Mr. Yakub's responsibility to take care and precaution in supplying such
oil, and that Karan, as a Yakub employee,was negligent.
- Mr. Vivian, on the other hand, claims that he was not told that Mr. Zaheer had to give it further to
Mr. Anand and that he was only told that the delivery was urgent and nothing more. Mr. Vivian is now
seeking compensation for the losses he has suffered as a result of the defamation he has been
accused of. As a result of the defamation, many customers have cancelled their contracts with Mr.
Vivian. Vivian also wants to hold "Ram Prasad," the news editor, accountable for posting such
defamatory statements against him.

-The editor claimed that the item was not published in the newspaper because the editor knew or had
reason to think it was derogatory to Mr. Vivian.As a result, Zaheer filed a civil suit for breach of
contract, compensation, damages, and return of advance payment, claiming that Vivian should have
delivered the supply two days before the 8th of March, i.e., on the 6th of March, as Vivian was told it
was urgent and he was well aware of Mr. Zaheer's business practises. In the same suit, Zaheer held
Mr. Yakub vicariously liable for his employee, truck driver Karan, because Mr. Karan had a duty to
protect the products from anything that could cause loss or injury to the commodities.

- The carrier firm claims that no carelessness occurred on their part, and that the truck was
adequately equipped and protected, and that the fire was not caused by a malfunction on their side.
Mr. Zaheer has filed a complaint with the honourable district court in the city of Sabalpur, Bugrat.
Mr.Vivian filed a written statement within the time limit set by law, arguing that the reliefs sought by
Mr. Zaheer are entirely untenable, and that the matter cannot be maintained. The court framed the
issues based on both parties' submissions. Mr.Vivian later filed an application opposing to the
honourable court's jurisdiction, but the application was dismissed by the court. Mr. Vivian was found
guilty for breach of contract and compelled to pay the damages by the court.

- After hearing all of the parties, the Court concluded that the carrier firm was not liable for
negligence as asserted by Mr. Zaheer since Mr. Zaheer failed to prove this fact by a preponderance of
the evidence. According to the law, it is the exclusive responsibility of the individual asserting the fact
to prove that fact, and according to the court, Mr. Zaheer failed to do so. Furthermore, Mr. Vivian was
unable to establish Mr. Zaheer's defamation, and the court ruled in favour of Mr. Zaheer on this basis.
Mr. Vivian, who was dissatisfied with the verdict, filed an appeal with the High Court of Bhugrat.
According to Mr. Vivian, jurisdiction in the case in question arises in only two places: the location
where the cause of action arose or the place where the defendant (i.e., Mr. Vivian) voluntarily
resides/carries on business/works for profit.
The High Court, on the other hand, dismissed this argument and did not go into detail about it. In
addition, the High Court dismissed Mr. Vivian's claim that he did not breach the contract and that the
carrier firm was not liable for carelessness. In other words, the High Court completely supported the
Trial Court's verdict.

- Mr. Vivian, who was dissatisfied with the verdict, filed an appeal with the High Court of Bhugrat.
According to Mr. Vivian, jurisdiction in the case in question arises in only two places: the location
where the cause of action arose or the place where the defendant (i.e., Mr. Vivian) voluntarily
resides/carries on business/works for profit.
The High Court, on the other hand, dismissed this argument and did not go into detail about it. In
addition, the High Court dismissed Mr. Vivian's claim that he did not breach the contract and that the
carrier firm was not liable for carelessness. In other words, the High Court completely supported the
Trial Court's verdict.