The High Court reaffirmed that summary eviction procedures apply to both residential and commercial premises under the Delhi Rent Control Act, based on legislative intent and precedent case law.

JUDGMENT

[VIA VIDEO CONFERENCING]

Rajiv Sahai Endlaw, J. The five petitioners, have filed this petition impugning the communication dated 1st October, 2019 of this Court, rejecting the representation dated 2nd May, 2018 made by the petitioners on the Administrative side of this Court. It is the case of the petitioners, that (i) they are tenants in different shops in the city of Delhi; (ii) different Rent Control legislations, viz. New Delhi House Rent Control Order 1939, Delhi Rent Control Ordinance 1944, Delhi and Ajmer-Marwara Rent Control Act 1947, Delhi and Ajmer Rent Control Act 1952 and Delhi Rent Control Act, 1958 (the Act) have been applicable to Delhi from time to time; (iii) Section 14 (1)(e) of the Act afforded to the landlords a right to evict the tenant on the ground of requirement of the premises for the residence of himself/herself and their dependant family members; (iv) vide amendment of the year 1976 to the Act, Section 25B was incorporated in the Act, prescribing summary procedure for decision of the petitions for eviction on the ground under Section 14 (1)(e) of the Act; (v) in the debate in the Parliament preceding the aforesaid amendment of the year 1976, the then Minister of State in the Ministry of Works and Housing allayed the apprehension that commercial tenants would also be evicted through summary procedure, by stating that the said procedure was confined to residential premises and did not apply to commercial premises; (vi) challenge made in CWP No.1092-1093/1999, by one Satyawati Sharma, before this Court, to the vires of Section 14 (1)(e) of the Act, was negatived vide judgment dated 27th August, 2002; (vii) however the Supreme Court, in appeal preferred by Satyawati Sharma, vide judgment Satyawati Sharma Vs. Union of India, (2008) 5 SCC 287, made the eviction of tenants under Section 14 (1)(e) of the Act applicable qua commercial premises also; (viii) pursuant to the aforesaid judgment, the Rent Controllers and Additional Rent Controllers in Delhi, vis-a-vis petitions filed by landlords under Section 14 (1)(e) of the Act qua premises let out for commercial purposes, started following the summary procedure under Section 25B of the Act, for the said petitions also, failing to appreciate that Section 25B of the Act had no applicability to the premises let out for commercial purposes; (ix) aggrieved by the application of summary procedure to petitions for eviction under Section 14 (1)(e) of the Act with respect to commercial premises, the petitioners preferred CM(M) No.385/2018 under Article 227 of the Constitution of India, before this Court, seeking issuance of an order or direction in the nature of a Practice Direction to the Rent Controllers/Additional Rent Controllers in Delhi regarding nonapplicability of Section 25B of the Act to eviction petitions filed qua premises let out for commercial purposes/non-residential use, under Section 14 (1)(e) of the Act; (x) the aforesaid CM(M) 385/2018 was disposed of by a Single Judge of this court vide order dated 6th April, 2018 as under:

"After some hearing, the learned counsel for the petitioner submitted that he does not press the petition for consideration on the judicial side and instead reserves the right to make an appropriate petition to the High Court on the administrative side for exercise of its jurisdiction in terms of Article 227(2)(b) of the Constitution of India for cons