Legal heirs must independently establish their status as cultivating tenants and contribute physical labor to the cultivation of the land to qualify under the Tamil Nadu Cultivating Tenants Protection Act, 1955.

JUDGMENT

(Prayer: Civil Revision Petitions filed under Section 6B of Tamil Nadu Cultivative Tenancy Protection Act r/w. Section 115 of the Code of Civil Procedure, against the order dated 04.04.2017 passed in T.C.T.P.No.32 of 2007, on the file of the Revenue Court, Madurai. Civil Revision Petitions filed under Section 6B of Tamil Nadu Cultivative Tenancy Protection Act r/w. Section 115 of the Code of Civil Procedure, against the order dated 04.04.2017 passed in T.C.T.P.No.2 of 2010, on the file of the Revenue Court, Madurai.)

Common Order:

1. Both the Civil Revision Petitions are at the instance of the petitioners, who filed T.C.T.P.Nos.2 and 32 of 2010, on the file of the Revenue Court, Madurai, seeking permission of the Court to deposit the rent for a period of 3 years and 32 years respectively.

2. The said applications were resisted by the respondent (same landlord in both the revision petitions) on the ground that the petitioners were not cultivating tenants and in the absence of the same, they are indulging in cutting down trees and causing loss to the respondents / landlords.

3. The Revenue Court, after considering the respective pleadings and evidence let in by the parties, held that both the petitioners were not able to establish that they were cultivating tenants and proceeded to dismiss the said applications. The said orders passed by the Revenue Court, Madurai are under challenge in the above Civil Revision Petitions, mainly on the ground that the Revenue Court failed to see that the petition in T.C.T.P.No.32 of 2010 was originally filed by the petitioners' father viz., Nachimuthu Gounder and that he died during the pendency of the proceedings (ie. on 10.09.2013) and in T.C.T.P.No.2 of 2010 was originally filed by the petitioners' father viz., Vellaichamy Gounder and that he died during the pendency of the proceedings (ie. 03.02.2000).

4. I have heard Mr. V.Arjun, learned counsel for the revision petitioner and Mr.D.Venkatesh, learned counsel for the second respondent. I have also paid my anxious and careful consideration to arguments advanced by the parties.

5. The learned counsel for the revision petitioner would state that apart from canvassing the grounds in the revision petition, which have been set out hereinabove, absolutely no prejudice would be caused to the respondent / landlord, if the petitions are allowed and the rents are deposited.

6. Per contra, the learned counsel for the second respondent would state that merely because the revision petitioners have been impleaded consequent to the death of the original cultivating tenant, they cannot claim to be cultivating tenants automatically. They have to satisfy the requirements of statute and the Revenue Court has rightly held that they have failed to establish their rights as cultivating tenants and dismissed the petitions.

7. Having considered the contentions put forth by the respective counsel and having perused the records and the impugned order, it is seen that the father of the revision petitioners in both the Revisions was a cultivating tenant originally and petitions had been filed by them for deposit of rent and pending the same, they died and the revision petitioners brought themselves on record in the capacity of being a legal heir. The Tamil Nadu Cultivating Tenants Protection Act, 1955 (Act XXV of 1955), defines “Cultivating tenant” under Section 2. Section 2 (aa) of the Tamil Nadu Cultivating Tenants Protection Act, 1955 (Act XXV of 1955), is extracted hereunder for easy reference:

(aa) "cultivating tenant" –

(i) means a person who contributes his own physical labour or that of any member of his family in the cultivation of any land belonging to another, under a tenancy agreement, express or implied; and

(ii) includes-

(a) any such person who continues in possession of lire land after the determination of the tenancy agreement;

(b) the heir of such person, if the heir contributes his own p