The main legal point established is that the legal heirs of a deceased tenant have the right to continue proceedings for restoration of possession under the Kerala Buildings (Lease & Rent Control) Act, 1965, Section 11(12).

K. Narayana Kurup, J.

1. The revision petitioner is the landlord and the respondent are the heirs of the deceased original tenant. The revision is directed against the orders of the courts below holding that the legal representatives of the tenant have a right to continue the proceedings on the death of the tenant for restoration of possession under S.11(12) of the Kerala Buildings (Lease & Rent Control) Act, 1965 (for short 'the Act').

2. The facts in brief are as follows:

The petition schedule room was owned by the revision petitioner landlord. He filed a petition against the original tenant, the late Krishnan Vaidyan. The Rent Control Petition was contested up to this Court by the tenant and ultimately the building was got delivered through Court in the year 1978 in execution proceedings. Thereafter, the revision petitioner - landlord, remodeled the building according to his need and is now in occupation of the same. The ground floor is being used for the business purpose and the first floor is being used for his residence. While so, the original tenant viz. late Krishnan Vaidyan filed LA. 1001/1983 under S.11(12) of the Act for restoration of possession alleging that the building is not being used for the landlord for the purpose for which it was got surrendered by him. That petition was filed after a long period of 5 years from the date of surrender of the building. During the pendency of the petition, the original tenant Krishnan Vaidyan passed away and a petition I. A. No. 1732 of 1986 was filed by his legal heirs praying for impleading them as additional petitioners 2 to 5. During the pendency of the I. A., petitioner No. 5 in the said I. A. viz. the daughter of the deceased tenant passed away. But no attempt was made to implead her legal heirs. The landlord opposed the petition mainly on the ground that after the death of the original tenant his legal heirs will not get a right to get themselves impleaded in order to contest the proceedings as the right even by the statute to an evicted tenant is a right personal to him. However, the Rent Control Court as per order dated 19.8.1988 in I.A. 1732of 1986 allowed the application permitting the legal heirs of the deceased tenant to continue the proceedings for restoration of possession. Being aggrieved by the said order, the revision petitioner - landlord took up the matter before the Rent Control Appellate Authority as R.C. A. 26 of 1989 which came to be dismissed as per judgment dated 9.2.1990 confirming the order of the Rent Control Court. The Rent Control Appellate Authority took the view that the definition of 'tenant' in S.2(6) of the Act being inclusive of the heirs of the deceased tenant, the right conferred under S.11(12) of the Act is heritable and as such the petition for restoration of possession by the legal representatives of the deceased tenant is maintainable and this revision is directed against the aforesaid orders of the courts below as already noticed.

3. Heard Mr. S.K. Brahmanandan, learned counsel for the petitioner and Mr. R. Bhaskaran, learned counsel for the respondents who appeared amicus curiae.

4. The short question that arises for consideration in this revision petition is whether the right given to the tenant under S.11(12) of the Act is personal to him and whether the legal heirs of an evicted tenant can continue the proceedings for restoration of possession under S.11(12) of the Act on the death of the original tenant by getting themselves impleaded. In otherwords can it be said that the legal heirs of an evicted tenant (since deceased) under the Act who are no longer in possession of the building in question have no right in the property? In this connection, the definition of "tenant" occurring in S.2(6) of the Act as substituted by S.2(b) of Act 7/1966 (20.7.1966) assumes significance.

5. The definition of tenant: "Tenant" means any person by whom or on whose account rent is payable for a building and includes:

(i) the heir or heirs of a dece