Madras High Court
KAILASAM
R.Raja Konar - Appellant
Versus
Andal Ammal - Respondent
Decided On : 07/13/1971
LANDLORD AND TENANT - EVICTION - BONA FIDE REQUIREMENT FOR DEMOLITION AND RECONSTRUCTION - ORDER BASED ON COMPROMISE - EXECUTABILITY - TAMIL NADU BUILDINGS (LEASE AND RENT CONTROL) ACT, 1960 - SECTION 10(2)(VII)
Fact of the Case:
Tenants challenged an eviction order passed by the courts below, arguing that it was based on a compromise and not on a finding of breach under Section 10(2) clauses (i) to (vii) of the Tamil Nadu Buildings (Lease and Rent Control) Act, 1960. The landlady claimed that she required the building bona fide for demolition and reconstruction.
Finding of the Court:
The court found that the Rent Controller and the appellate court had accepted the landlady's plea that she required the premises bona fide for demolition and reconstruction. The revisional court also found that the tenants had consented to an order of eviction on this basis and had only disputed the time granted for vacating the premises.
Issues: Whether the order of eviction was executable, given that it was based on a compromise and not on a finding of breach under Section 10(2) clauses (i) to (vii) of the Act.
Ratio Decidendi: The court held that the orders of the courts below were on merits and executable. It reasoned that the courts below had applied their minds and come to the conclusion that the landlady was entitled to an order of eviction on the ground that she required the premises bona fide for demolition and reconstruction. The court distinguished the Supreme Court decisions cited by the petitioners, which involved cases where the decree was passed without satisfying the court that the landlord had established a ground for eviction.
Final Decision: The petition was dismissed with costs, and the court declined to grant any further time for vacating the premises beyond the 1½ years already granted by the appellate court.
appellate court confirmed the order of the Rent Controller except for the modification that the tenants were granted 1½ years time from the date of the order for vacating the premises. The tenants took up the matter up on revision to the District Judge, Madurai. The learned District Judge found that the parties had agreed that the order of eviction may be confirmed but the tenants wanted 3½ years time to vacate the premises while the landlady agreed to grant only nine months time. As the parties could not agree regarding the time for eviction, the matter was left to the discretion of the court. In the revision preferred by the tenants, it was contended that the order of the Appellate authority granting 1½ years time was erroneous and that it should have granted 3½ years time to vacate the premises. Regarding the contention that the order of eviction based on the joint endorsement of the parties was a nullity, the learned District Judge held that both the parties made a written statement that the order of eviction passed by the Rent Controller may be confirmed and hence the order of eviction was confirmed on merits and the only question that was in dispute was about the time that has to be granted to the tenants for vacating.
2. On the facts stated above it is clear that the Rent Controller found that the requirement by the landlady for demolition and reconstruction was accepted by the tenants in the lower appellate Court. The revisional Court also found that the tenants did consent to an order of eviction on the basis that the landlady wanted the building bona fide for demolition and reconstruction and prayed for time. The only question therefore that was before the appellate court and the revisional Court was about the time that was to be granted to the tenants. The tenants having explicitly agreed to the order of eviction on the ground that the landlady required the building bona fide for demolition and reconstruction and the court having accepted the plea of the landlady that the premises were required bona fide for demolition and reconstruction it is not open to the petitioner to contend that the order for eviction passed by the courts below merely on the compromise memo without considering the question whether
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