High Court Of Delhi
S.D.KHANNA - Appellant
Versus
TRILOK NATH TREHAN - Respondent
Civil 301 of 1979
Decided On : 11/07/1979
LANDLORD AND TENANT - EVICTION - BONA FIDE REQUIREMENT - SPLITTING OF TENANCY - JURISDICTION OF CONTROLLER VIS-A-VIS CIVIL COURT - DELHI RENT CONTROL ACT, 1958, SS. 11, 14 (1) (E), 50.
Fact of the Case:
The landlord filed an eviction application against the tenant, claiming bona fide requirement of the tenanted premises for the residence of himself and his family. The tenant contested the application, claiming that the entire second floor, including the open space, was let out to him and that the landlord's requirement was not genuine. The Civil Judge held that the entire second floor was within the tenancy, but the Additional Controller found that the open space was not included in the tenancy and ordered eviction of the tenant from the remaining portion of the second floor.
Finding of the Court:
The court held that the findings of the Additional Controller regarding bona fide requirement were findings of fact and there was no scope for interference. The court also held that the landlord was entitled to live in reasonable comfort and the requirement of the married daughters had to be taken into consideration while determining the residential requirement of the landlord. The court further held that the order of recovery of possession could not be maintained as it purported to split the tenancy, which could not be done in view of the Supreme Court decision in Miss S. Sanyal v. Gain Chand. However, the court also held that the finding of the Civil Judge was not binding upon the Additional Controller as the civil court was not competent to decide the eviction proceedings. The court further held that the Controller had jurisdiction to decide the extent of the premises under tenancy and that the order of eviction could be maintained in so far as the portion on the second floor other than the open space was concerned.
Issues: 1. Whether the landlord had bona fide requirement of the tenanted premises for the residence of himself and his family? 2. Whether the entire second floor, including the open space, was let out to the tenant? 3. Whether the order of recovery of possession could be maintained as it purported to split the tenancy?
Ratio Decidendi: 1. The findings of the Additional Controller regarding bona fide requirement were findings of fact and there was no scope for interference. 2. The landlord was entitled to live in reasonable comfort and the requirement of the married daughters had to be taken into consideration while determining the residential requirement of the landlord. 3. The order of recovery of possession could not be maintained as it purported to split the tenancy, which could not be done in view of the Supreme Court decision in Miss S. Sanyal v. Gain Chand. 4. The finding of the Civil Judge was not binding upon the Additional Controller as the civil court was not competent to decide the eviction proceedings. 5. The Controller had jurisdiction to decide the extent of the premises under tenancy and that the order of eviction could be maintained in so far as the portion on the second floor other than the open space was concerned.
Final Decision: The court dismissed the revision petition and maintained the order of recovery of possession, observing that the tenant was liable to be evicted from the entire second floor.
( 1 ) THE petitioner is a tenant and the respondent is the landlord. The tenanted premises are in the second floor of the house. The landlord terminated the tenancy by a notice dated February 18, 1976. He made the eviction application on April 16,1976. In the application the tenanted premises were said to be one Barsati with temporary kitchen one open bath-cum-latrine on the second floor which were also shown in red in the plan attached. The portion in red did not include the open space. The ground for eviction was that the landlord required the premises bona fide for residence of himself and the members of his family dependent upon him as the first floor in which the family was residing had become insufficient for their requirement. The tenant filed a written statement on August 25, 1976. He contended that he was a tenant of the entire second floor including the open space and one bath-room on the ground floor which was illegally occupied by the landlord. He also denied that the portion in occupation of the landlord was insufficient for his requirements. Besides this, the accommodation in the ground floor has been falling vacant which he had been renting out meanwhile to several tenants from time to time at higher rent. The only purpose for eviction proceedings was to secure vacant possession and then re-let the premises similarly at higher rent. On September 28) 1976, replication was filed by the landlord saying that the open space on the second floor was never let out and the roof was bring used by this family for the purpose of sleeping and placing their cots and storing other articles. The temporary bath-room on the ground floor was never let to the tenant and it was demolished upon the directions of the Municipal Corporation.
( 2 ) ON September 15, 1977, the tenant filed a suit in the court of the Sub-Judge 1st Glass, Delhi, asking for a permanent injunction restraining the defendant from entering the second floor without his permission and also directing him to remove his cots from the second floor. The learnedsub-Judge decreed the suit on October 3, 1978. He held that the tenancy comprised the entire second floor of the suit premise s. On March 26, 1979, the Addl. Controller made an order for possession in the eviction proceedings. He held that the entire second floor was not let out to the tenant. It was pointed out to him that the Sub-Judge had held otherwise. He observed that the order of the Sub-Judge was already under appeal and therefore, no importance could be attached to it. He found that the application was made in good faith. The present accommodation in possession of the landlord consisted of two bed rooms and one drawing-cum-dining room and two closed verandas. The family comprised the landlord, his wife, 3 sons and 4 daughters. Out of the sons, one was in the Army, who often visited him and another son had been transferred from Chandigarh to Delhi. One of the daughters has married. Yet another daughter has been adopted by his sister and has married but both of them often kept on coming. One son and two daughters are studying. The children are growing and marriages of the grown-up sons were to take place in immediate future. The landlord was a well-to-do gazetted officer having all the modern amenities such as TV, fridge, dining table, sofa set etc. The present accommodation was thus short of his genuine requirement. Hence, this revision.
( 3 ) NOW, the findings as to bonafide requirement are findings " fact and there is not much scope for this court to interfere. I agree with the learned Addl. Controller that the 3 rooms will be insufficient for the landlord to meet satisfactorily the requirements of the family with some status. It is for the landlord to choose which portion he likes to keep and therefore, the fact that the landlord is renting out the ground floor to various tenants at various times increasing rent all the time will not affect the bona fide requirement at all. The respondent
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