Section 10 of the Indian Contract Act, 1872 provides "all agreements are contracts if they are made by the free consent of parties competent to contract, for a lawful consideration and with a lawful object, and are not h

Provisions related to the acceptance of offer under the Indian Contract Act, 1872 According to section 2(a) of Indian Contract Act, 1872(the Act), when one person signifies to another his willingness to do or to abstain from doing anything, with a view to obtaining the assent of that other to such act or abstinence, he is said to make a proposal. In general understanding the words "proposal" and "offer" are used interchangeably. According to section 2(b), when the person to whom the proposal is made signifies his assent thereto, the proposal is said to be accepted. A proposal, when accepted, becomes a promise. According to section 3, the communication of the acceptance of proposals is deemed to be made by any act or omission of the party accepting by which he intends to communicate such acceptance, or which has the effect of communicating it. According to Section 4, the communication of an acceptance is complete, as against the proposer, when it is put in a course of transmission to him, so as to be out of the power of the acceptor; as against the acceptor, when it comes to the knowledge of the proposer. Section 7 states that an Acceptance must be absolute and unqualified and must be expressed in some usual and reasonable manner, unless the proposal prescribes the manner in which it is to be accepted. If the proposal prescribes a manner in which it is to be accepted, and the acceptance is not made in such manner, the proposer may, within a reasonable time after the acceptance is communicated to him, insist that his proposal shall be accepted in the prescribed manner, and not otherwise; but if he fails to do so, he accepts the acceptance. According to section 9, an acceptance may be express i.e., by words spoken or written or implied from the conduct of the parties. Rules Governing Acceptance Acceptance may be express i.e., by words spoken or written or implied from the conduct of the parties. If a particular method of acceptance is prescribed, the offer must be accepted in the prescribed manner. Acceptance must be unqualified and absolute and must correspond with all the terms of the offer. A counter offer or conditional acceptance operates as a rejection of the offer and causes it to lapse, e.g., where a horse is offered for ₹1,000 and the offeree counter-offers ₹990, the offer lapses by rejection. Acceptance must be communicated to the offeror, for acceptance is complete the moment it is communicated. Where the offeree merely intended to accept but does not communicate his intention to the offeror, there is no contract. Mere mental acceptance is not enough. Mere silence on the part of the offeree does not amount to acceptance. If the offer is one which is to be accepted by being acted upon, no communication of acceptance to the offeror is necessary, unless communication is stipulated for in the offer itself. Acceptance must be given within a reasonable time and before the offer lapses or is revoked. An offer becomes irrevocable by acceptance.