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1991 Supreme(Cal) 196

High Court of Calcutta
Bhagabati Prasad Banerjee, Sachi Kanta Hazari, JJ.
Himanshu Bikash Das – Appellant
Versus
Ramendra Mohan Dutta – Respondent
Decided On : Apr 12, 1991

Advocates Appeared:
Amalendu Mitra, Debaprosad Bagchi

The concept of 'family' under the West Bengal Premises Tenancy Act, 1956, should be interpreted broadly to include married daughters, especially when the landlord has no son, and their requirement for accommodation should be considered as a reasonable requirement of the landlord.

Headnote:

LANDLORD AND TENANT - EVICTION - REASONABLE REQUIREMENT - MARRIED DAUGHTERS - FAMILY MEMBERS - REASONABLENESS - SUITABLE ACCOMMODATION - WEST BENGAL PREMISES TENANCY ACT, 1956 - SECTIONS 13(1)(F), 108(O), 108(P).

Fact of the Case:

The appellant, a tenant, challenged the eviction order passed by the lower court in favor of the respondent, the landlord, on the grounds of reasonable requirement and violation of clauses (O) and (P) of Section 108 of the Transfer of Property Act.

Finding of the Court:

The court held that the landlord had a reasonable requirement for the suit premises for his own use and occupation, considering his family members, including his married daughters, who were required to look after him and his wife in their old age, and that he had no other suitable accommodation.

Issues: 1. Whether the landlord's requirement for the suit premises was reasonable, including the accommodation for his married daughters? 2. Whether the landlord had any other suitable accommodation elsewhere?

Ratio Decidendi: 1. The court interpreted the term 'family' under the West Bengal Premises Tenancy Act, 1956, broadly to include married daughters, especially when the landlord had no son, and recognized their role in looking after their parents in old age. 2. The court held that the landlord's requirement for rooms for the stay of married daughters was bona fide and personal, considering the social and cultural context in India, where daughters are expected to support their parents. 3. The court emphasized that the concept of 'family' should not be given a restrictive meaning contrary to the spirit of the Act and that the court should not introduce a meaning that is contrary to the need of the landlord.

Final Decision: The court dismissed the appeal and upheld the eviction order passed by the lower court.

Judgment

1. THIS is an appeal filed by the tenant/appellant against the judgment and decree passed by the learned 2nd Judge, City Civil Court, Calcutta in Ejectment Suit No. 584 of 1977 dated 16th May 1989. By the said order and judgment the court below decreed the suit against the tenant/appellant whereby the plaintiff/opposite party was to get has possession of the suit premises by evicting the defendant/appellant. The suit was filed by the plaintiff / respondents for eviction of the defendant/appellant on the ground of reasonable requirement and also on the ground of doing acts contrary to the provisions of clauses (O) and (P) of Section 108 of the Transfer of Property Act.

2. THE defendant/appellant was a tenant under the plaintiff / opposite party in respect of northern portion of premises no. 34/c, keshab Chandra Sen Street (formerly known as 36k, Keshab Chandra sen Street) excluding two garages in the ground floor of the said premises, situated under police Station Amherst Street. Calcutta paying a monthly rental of Rs. 70/ -. The defendant/appellant no. 2 was a sub-tenant in respect of the first floor of the said premises. The plaintiff/opposite party was a sitting Judge of this Court at the time of filling the Suit and the family of the Plaintiff was consisting of himself, his wife, his youngest unmarried daughter who was 14 years on the date of filling of the Suit. Apart from that two elder daughters of the plaintiff were married and ordinarily reside with their respective husbands both of them were stationed outside Calcutta. The plaintiffs eldest son-in-law resides at Rishra in the District of Hooghly and the second-son-in-law resides at Kharagpur in the District of Midnapore. The plaintiff had no male child. The Plaintiff was residing at the front portion of Premises No. 42, Keshab Chandra Sen Street which was very near to the suit premises. The front portion of the said house and premises no. 42, Keshab Chandra Sen Street originally belonged to the plaintiffs late father and was owned and occupied by the plaintiff and his other three brothers with their respective families. The plaintiff had an undivided one-fourth share in the said front portion of the said property and an undivided one-seventh share in the south Western back portion of the said residential house and premises. It is an admitted position that in that house the plaintiff was in exclusive possession only two useable living rooms in the front portion, one of which had been converted into and was being used as his chamber and the other was being used as his bed-room. The drawing room was also used by the plaintiff in common with other three brothers who were the co-sharers, of the said premises. As the said front portion of premises no. 42, Keshab Chandra Sen Street, could not be conveniently partitioned into four separate lots and that even if such partition was feasible, the same could not result in any improvement upon the plaintiffs existing accommodation. As the plaintiff was not in possession of any reasonably suitable accommodation, the plaintiff filed a suit on the ground that the plaintiff reasonably requires the suit premises far his own use and occupation after making substantial addition and alteration thereto. At the time of filling of the suit the plaintiff was a sitting Judge of this Court and the plaintiff claimed that the plaintiff requires accommodation not only for himself," his wife and unmarried daughter and married daughters, but also for other staff who were living with him such as one cook, two men servants and one maid-servant and he has to engage an additional servant when his grand-children comes to live with him, which they do very often. The plaintiff also claimed that two elder daughters of the plaintiff were married and ordinarily reside with their respective husbands outside Calcutta. They visits their parents at the weekends and during long vacations and holidays and for the purpose of their stay with their husbands an
















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