Indian Contract Act, 1872

Voidability of agreements without free consent

19. When consent to an agreement is caused by coercion, [***] fraud or misrepresentation, the agreement is a contract voidable at the option of the party whose consent was so caused.

A party to a contract, whose consent was caused by fraud or misrepresentation, may, if he thinks fit, insist that the contract shall be performed, and that he shall be put on the position in which he would have been if the representations made had been true.

Exception : If such consent was caused by misrepresentation or by silence, fraudulent within the meaning of section 17, the contract, nevertheless, is not voidable, if the party whose consent was so caused had the means of discovering the truth with ordinary diligence.

Explanation: A fraud or misrepresentation which did not cause the consent to a contract of the party on whom such fraud was practised, or to whom such misrepresentation was made, does not render a contract voidable.

Illustrations

(a)	-	A, intending to deceive B, falsely represents that five hundred maunds of indigo are made annually at A's factory, and thereby induces B to buy the factory. The contract is voidable at the option of B.
(b)	-	A, by a misrepresentation, leads B erroneously to be .... To read the full section download the app from Google Play store Latest Job Openings View all Featured ARTICLESHIP 19 March 2026 Article Assistant Gupta Sachdeva & Co. Chartered Accountants New Delhi CA Final View Details Featured 28 March 2026 Accountant Ashok Amol & Associates New Delhi B.Com View Details Featured 29 April 2026 Manager- Finance and Compliance Naveen Fintech Pvt Ltd Kolkata CA Inter View Details Featured 13 April 2026 GST CONSULTANCY Abhishek G Agrawal & Co. Korba CA Final View Details Featured 14 April 2026 GST CONSULTANT Abhishek G Agrawal & Co. Korba CA Final View Details Featured 28 March 2026 CA Final Ashok Amol & Associates New Delhi CA Final View Details Share  Facebook  Twitter  Linkedin  Reddit  Email  Whatsapp  Gmail  Pocket  Print  Pinterest  PDF  Translate Whatsapp Groups GST Income Tax CA Final CA Inter CAclubindia Login at CAclubindia CAclubindia India's largest network for finance professionals User Name Password Remember Me Forgot Password ? Alternatively, you can log in using: Login with Google Don't have an account? Register Now click here to register