The sufficiency of the notice for eviction under Section 21(1)(a) of the Rent Control Act and the consideration of comparative hardship were the central legal points established in the judgment.

JUDGMENT :

VINEET SARAN, J.

Leave granted.

2. This is an appeal filed by the landlord challenging the Judgment and Order of the High Court passed in Rent Control Writ Petition No.3457 of 2016, whereby the release application filed by the appellant has been rejected, and the Orders passed by the Prescribed Authority and the Appellate Authority, allowing the release application of the appellant-landlord, have been set aside.

3. Brief facts of this case, relevant for the purpose of the present appeal, are that the appellant filed an application under Section 21(1)(a) of the U.P. Urban Building (Regulation of Letting, Rent and Eviction) Act, 1972 (hereinafter referred to as the ‘Rent Control Act’) for release of Shop no.64 situated on the ground floor of the Building No.31/72, Mahatma Gandhi Marg, Hazratganj, Lucknow, the size of which is given as 42 square feet. The case of the appellant was that he had purchased the shop in question for his personal use, vide registered Sale Deed dated 29.10.2004. The respondent was a tenant of the shop in question on a monthly rent of Rs.15 and doing business of repair and sale of watches. After purchase of the said shop, the appellant requested the respondent to vacate the shop, to which the respondent initially agreed but later refused to vacate. The appellant, thus, filed the release application.

The case of the appellant was that the respondent (tenant) is a rich person who owns two buildings and the family of the respondent has other commercial accommodations in their possession in the main market of Hazratganj, Khurram Nagar and I.T. Crossing, Nirala Nagar in the city of Lucknow. Another application of the appellant for release of the adjoining Shop no.63 (having an area of 190 square feet) was also pending. The case of the appellant further was that he was a young man and wanted to start his own business of repair and sale of watches in the shop in question after its renovation, as at present he was assisting his father in the business of sale and repair of watches, and has vast experience of such business and that this shop in question would be suitable for his business. His case further was that his family consists of himself, his wife and one minor daughter and that he would be ready to pay two years rent as compensation to the respondent for vacating the said shop and that the need of the appellant was genuine, bona fide, pressing and urgent. He had further undertaken not to let out the shop in question in future and use the same for his personal business.

4. The respondent contested the release application and filed his written statement in which he admitted that the appellant was the landlord of the shop in question. It was stated that the father of the respondent was tenant of the shop in question since 1951 and was carrying on the business of repair and sale of watches and that the respondent had been helping his father in business since 1960. It was stated that the income from the said shop was his only source of livelihood and that in spite of his best efforts, he could not get another shop in the locality of Hazratganj, even though, he had applied for allotment of another shop to Rent Control and Eviction Officer, Lucknow. The respondent also stated that if the appellant was in genuine need, he would have purchased a vacant shop and not an old tenanted shop. It was also stated that the appellant never asked the respondent to vacate the disputed shop and that no notice with regard to the same was ever given to the respondent. The case of the respondent was that the appellant was in property business and his intention was to get the shop vacated, and after demolishing the existing building, raise multi-storey building. The respondent further stated that he was in need of the shop in question and that his need was greater than that of the appellant and that even though the son of the respondent may be having another tenanted shop, but that would make no difference.

5. By its Order dated