Judges : R.BHASKARAN,K.R.UDAYABHANU
Ahammed - Appellant
Versus
Krishnalal - Respondent
Case No : R.C.Rev.No.445 of 2004
Decided On : 05/27/2005
Advocates Appeared :
For the Petitioner: K.C. John, T.M. Mohammed Youseff, T.G. Rajendran, Advocates. For the Respondents: K.C. Charles, Advocate.
kerela Building (lease and rent control) Act 1965, sections 11(9),11(4)(iii) - petition challenge in this Rent Control Revision is directed against concurrent findings of Rent Control Court as well as Appellate Authority holding that revision petitioner-tenant of building shown in Rent Control Petition is liable to be evicted - Petitioner in Rent Control Petition purchased property by registered sale deed from original owners and filed Rent Control Petition in same year contending that tenant has in his possession a building reasonably sufficient for his requirement in same city and that is liable to be evicted - Held, Judges of the High Court did not as is contended before us consider evidence is not the duty of Appellate Court when it agrees with the view of trial court on the evidence either to restate effect of evidence or to reiterate reasons given by Court - Expression of general agreement with reasons given by Court decision of which is under appeal would ordinarily sufficient - Senior counsel appearing for t revision petitioner contended that building owned by tenant is a lodge and petition schedule building is used as a hotel and it is not possible to conduct a hotel business in other premises owned by tenant counsel for the respondents on other hand contended that though building is used as lodge also there is space available in the ground floor and first floor of the building which can be used for hotel purpose. He also pointed out that Commissioner appointed in case has submitted a plan and report and Commissioner has reported that tenant has exhibited a board in front of his building as follows - Bake House Inn Hotel and Family Restaurant is found by Rent Control Court that the tenant is running a hotel and family restaurant in the building owned by him. When the tenant was examined, the only reason for not accepting the contention of the landlord on this aspect was that the petition schedule building was facing M.G Road and the tenant might not get the same business in the building owned by him, a little away from the petition schedule building. It is pointed out that his case was that there was no sufficient space in the building owned by him and that he will not get the same volume of business in that building - Though the Commissioner has not seen any restaurant functioning in first floor, his report shows that it has got an area of 2384 sq.feet in his possession and therefore there is nothing which prevents revision petitioner from shifting the hotel business presently being conducted in the petition schedule building to the ground and 1st floor of the building owned by him. The Rent Control Court found that merely because the other building is having a lesser area than the petition schedule building that by itself is not a reason to reject the petition for eviction - Petition allowed
Bhaskaran, J.
The challenge in this Rent Control Revision is directed against the concurrent findings of the Rent Control Court as well as the Appellate Authority holding that the revision petitioner tenant of the building shown in the Rent Control Petition is liable to be evicted under S.11 (4) (iii) of the Kerala Buildings (Lease and Rent Control) Act.
2. The petitioner in the Rent Control Petition purchased the property by registered sale deed dated 27-3-2002 from the original owners and filed the Rent Control Petition in the same year contending that the tenant has in his possession a building reasonably sufficient for his requirement in the same city and that he is liable to be evicted under S.11(4) (iii) of the Act. The tenant contended that as per the rental agreement dated 2-9-1996 between the tenant and the original landlords, he was entitled to be in possession of the tenanted premises for a period of ten years and the Rent Control Petition, filed before the expiry of ten years is not maintainable. He also contended that the allegation in the Rent Control Petition that the tenant has another building reasonably sufficient for his requirement is incorrect.
3. The Rent Control Court considered the following points. (1) Whether the petition is barred under S. 11(9) of the Act, and (2) Whether the petitioner is entitled for an order of eviction under S. 11 (4) (iii) of the Act. These are the points which are seriously and strongly pressed before us also. The question whether the alternate accommodation available with the tenant is sufficient for his purpose or not was not considered in detail by the Appellate Authority. According to the learned counsel for the respondent, the Senior Advocate who argued the case of the tenant before the Appellate Authority had expressly stated in court that he was not seriously pressing that point and it was for that reason that the Judgment of the Appellate Authority does not contain any discussion on that aspect. One of the questions to be considered in this revision is how far the tenant can urge that contention in the revision before this Court. The question whether the tenant is entitled for the protection of S.11(9) was considered by the Appellate Authority and it was found against the tenant. There was also a further contention that the Rent Control Petition was barred by limitation.
4. The points for consideration mi this revision are (1) whether the tenant is justified in contending that the Rent Control Petition is liable to be dismissed under S.11 (9) of the Act, (2) whether the landlord has established the grounds available under S.11 (4) (iii) of the Act to get an order of eviction in the, Rent Control Petition and (3) whether the Rent Control Petition is barred by limitation.
Point No.1
5. Ext.B-1 is the registration copy of the sale deed in favour of the present landlord by the original landlords. A reading of that document clearly establishes that the original landlords had agreed for renewal of the lease fox a further period often years on a monthly rent of Rs.8,000 for the first five years from 1-8-1996 and thereafter at Rs.10,400 for the remaining five years. Therefore, the fact that the earlier landlords had agreed for a continuation of the tenancy arrangement for a period of ten years on payment of the stipulated rent cannot be disputed. There is also no dispute that the Rent Control Petition is filed before the expiry of ten years from the date of the renewal of the lease. But the contention of the present landlord is that the lease agreement between the original landlords and the tenant was not a registered lease and that document was not produced before court. Therefore, in the absence of a registered lease deed an agreement to lease for ten years is not legally enforceable. The further contention of the landlord is that though S.11(9) of the Act states that "where the tenancy is for a specified period agreed upon between the landlord and the tenant, the land
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