ORDER

This is one of the classic instances of the cases holding the law that "delay defeats justice", the landlord filed a suit in 1966 for eviction of the tenant for personal occupation and today after 31 years, we are disposing of the matter at the level of this Court. It is not necessary to detail all the circumstances leading to the filing of the petition. Suffice it to state that the landlord who was just to retire from private service having four unmarried grown-up daughters and one son aged 24 years had filed an application for eviction of the tenant under the Bombay Rents, Hotel & Lodging House Rates Control Act, 1947 (for short, the Act ). The application was filed on two grounds, namely, one she needs the premises for personal occupation and the tenant also has committed default in the payment of the rent for more than fix months. When a notice was issued by the landlady-appellant calling upon the respondents to vacate the premises on the above grounds, reply came with the allegation that he was not in arrears of the rents and the appellant is not in need of the premise. Thus, necessitated the respondent to file the suit for eviction. In the written statement, a defence w