IMPORTANT POINT
Rent--Provisional Rent--Once the landlord-tenant relationship is denied the Rent Controller cannot pass any order of provisional assessment of rent.

Nirmaljit Kaur, J.

1. The facts, in short, are that the lease deed dated 01-01-2004 was executed between the landlord Sqn. Ldr. Gurdial Singh and other respondents and the petitioner-tenant, on the other side. The lease money, to be paid by the petitioner-tenant was Rs.1,11,000/- per month payable in advance by the 7th of each calendar month. The lease was for a period of five years but terminable at any time, by either of the parties, by giving three months notice in writing. In accordance with Clause 8 of the lease deed, the petitioner decided to vacate the premises and terminated the lease by sending notice dated 19.07.2004. The petitioner-tenant separately issued Legal notice dated 26.08.2004 and a communication dated 18.10.2004, informing respondent No.1 that the petitioner-tenant was vacating the premises on 19.10.2004. After the vacation of the tenanted premises on 19.10.2004, another communication dated 20-10-2004 and 06-11-2004 was sent, informing the landlord-respondents that he had vacated the tenanted premises.

2. The respondent-landlord, inspite of vacating the premises by the tenant, filed civil Suit for possession by way of ejectment and for recovery of Rs.4,09,00/- i.e. Rs.4,00,000/- by way of mesne profits + Rs.9000/- as interest thereon. However, the suit was dismissed with the following findings and observations :-

" Onus to prove these issues was upon the plaintiffs. Plaintiffs have not adduced any evidence nor do they have themselves stepped into witness box. Evidence of plaintiffs stood already closed. Even otherwise, the suit of the plaintiff, based on Chandigarh Administration Notification dated 07-11-2002 for ejectment and mesne profits and damages as framed is not maintainable as said notification is quashed by Honble Supreme Court in judgment titled as Vasdev Singh v. UOI, 2006(2) Rent Control Report 561."

3. Thereafter, after 3-1/2 years of the petitioner-tenant having sent the notice dated 19.07.2004 under the East Punjab Urban Rent Restriction Act, 1974, a rent petition was filed by the respondent-landlord. The petitioner-tenant filed a detailed reply, stating in para 6 of the preliminary objections that the premises have already been vacated and no relationship of landlord and tenant exists.

4. It is also stated before this Court by learned counsel appearing on behalf of the petitioner that an application under Order 14 Rules 1 and 2 has also been filed by him in the Rent Petition to adjudicate upon the issue as to whether there exists a relationship of the landlord-tenant between the parties or not.

5. However, the Rent Controller, U.T. Chandigarh vide order dated 28.08.2008 heard the parties and passed a provisional order assessing the rent at the rate of Rs.1,11,000/- payable w.e.f. July, 2004 along with costs assessed at Rs.1000/- and interest. Aggrieved, the respondent has filed the present Revision

6. Petition, challenging the order dated 28.08.2008 vide which the rent has been provisionally assessed.

7. Learned counsel Mr. Balram Gupta, Sr. Advocate with Mr. Shikeesh Gupta, Advocate for the respondent vehemently argued that the petitioner-tenant was required to hand over the actual and physical possession of the demised premises to the respondent as per the terms and conditions of the lease deed. Since, the same has not been done, it does not amount to vacant possession. It was, further, argued that, in fact, an agreement R-1 has been signed between Amit Gawri, the present petitioner who was the tenant at the Ground Floor and Ajay Partap, who is the tenant at the basement of the said building for sharing the window. Reliance has been placed on this agreement to show that the petitioner had, in fact, sub-let the premises. Thus, due to the signing of the agreement with the other tenant, in the basement, amounts to subletting. Reliance was further placed on R-3 to show that the vacant possession had not been handed over. R-3 is a telegram, requesting the petitioner to intimate