Statutory tenants under the West Bengal Premises Tenancy Act cannot be evicted without following due legal processes, and contractual agreements cannot circumvent the statutory provisions.

JUDGMENT :

KRISHNA RAO, J.

1. In all the above mentioned applications, the defendants have filed similar application against the plaintiffs, thus all the applications are taken up together for consideration. The plaintiffs have filed six different suits against the defendants praying for the following reliefs:

“(a) Decree for recovery of khas possession of the “Said Unit” more particularly described in the schedule below in its entirety by evicting the defendant there from or any person/persons claiming through them.

(b) A decree for Rs. 22,000/- Only outstanding rent calculating from August 2014 to May, 2016 together with Interest.

(c) A decree for damages amounting Rs. 15,00,000/- (Rupees Fifteen Lakhs) as fully stated in paragraph no 13 herein.

(d) A decree for mesne profit @ Rs. 5,000/- per diem for the period starting from 1st June, 2016 till the recovery of khas possession of the suit property or such mesne profit as may be decided by this Hon’ble Court in terms of the order 20 Rule 12 of the CIVIL PROCEDURE CODE .

(e) Injunction.

(f) Receiver.

(g) Cost.

(h) Any other relief or reliefs the plaintiffs are entitled to.”

2. The defendants have filed their respective applications praying for following reliefs:

(a) The suit being C.S. No. 189 of 2016 be dismissed and/or in the alternative, the plaint in C.S. No. 189 of 2016 be rejected.

(b) An Order be passed recalling and/or vacating and/or setting aside the orders dated September 4, 2017 and September 13, 2017 passed by this Hon’ble Court in G.A. No. 2935 of 2017 and in G.A No. 3034 of 2017 respectively arising out of and/or in connection with C.S. No. 189 of 2016.

(c) An Interim Order be passed all stay of all further proceedings in/or connection with the and/or arising out of C.S. No. 189 of 2016 pending herein with the present application.

(d) Stay.

(e) Interim and/or Ad-interim orders in terms of the above prayer.

(f) Costs.

(g) Such other orders as may be deemed fit.

3. The property being Premises No. 1, Wood Street, Kolkata-700016 belongs to the plaintiffs’ deities and the said property is being controlled and managed by their Shebiat Sri Monoj Lal Seal in accordance with the terms of settlement dated 7th May, 1982, passed in Suit No. 262 of 1965 by this Court. By two registered deeds of lease dated 14th June, 1989, the plaintiffs as lessors let out the said premises to Allen Park Properties Private Limited at a monthly rent of Rs. 575/-. The Allen Park Properties Limited by way of registered Deed of Sub-Lease dated 8th June, 1995 sub let with the possession a portion of the said premises to the defendants. In the meantime, on 10th July, 2001, the West Bengal Premises Tenancy Act, 1997 came into effect and the Allen Park Properties Limited became a tenant under the plaintiffs.

4. As per the provisions of the Tenancy Act, the defendants became trespassers as the Allen Park Properties Private Limited have sublet the premises to the defendant without written consent of the plaintiffs in terms of Section 26 of the West Bengal Premises Tenancy Act, 1997. The Allen Park Properties Private Limited had committed breaches of the covenants contemplated in the lease and failed to make payment of the rent for which the plaintiffs have determined the lease and initiated a suit being Ejectment Suit No. 55 of 2008 before the Learned Presidency Small Causes Court at Calcutta and the said suit was decreed ex-parte in favour of the plaintiffs.

5. The Plaintiffs have filed an application for execution of the decree dated 22nd December, 2011 and the Allen Park Pr