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1952 Supreme(All) 161

IN THE HIGH COURT OF ALLAHABAD
Sapru, J.
KEDAR NATH - Appellant
Versus
MOOL CHAND - Respondents
Second Appeal 175 Of 1952
Decided On : 07/23/1952

Advocates Appeared:
AMBIKA PRASAD, S.B.L.Gour, Sanker Sahai Varma

Headnote:

{'KEYWORD': 'U. P. (Temporary) Control of Rent and Eviction Act, 1947', 'SUBJECT': "District Magistrate's Authority to Authorize Suit for Eviction", 'ACT SECTION LIST': ['Section 3', 'Section 10(1)', 'Section 10(2)', 'Section 10(3)', 'Clause (d) of Section 2'], 'SUMMARY': 'The court held that the District Magistrate, as contemplated under Section 3 of the U. P. (Temporary) Control of Rent and Eviction Act, 1947, does not include an Additional District Magistrate. The court interpreted that the Legislature intended the District Magistrate to be a persona designata in this particular and special Act to mean the District Magistrate and not any Additional District Magistrate. The court also held that the power of delegation under Section 3 was intended by the Legislature to be exercised only by the District Magistrate.'}

Fact of the Case:

The plaintiff brought a suit for ejectment against the tenant from a shop in Agra with the permission of the Additional District Magistrate. The tenant resisted the suit on the ground that the Additional District Magistrate was not competent to authorize the plaintiff to institute a suit for ejectment under Section 3 of the U. P. (Temporary) Control of Rent and Eviction Act, 1947.

Finding of the Court:

The court held that the Additional District Magistrate was not competent to authorize the plaintiff to institute a suit for ejectment under Section 3 of the U. P. (Temporary) Control of Rent and Eviction Act, 1947. The court interpreted that the Legislature intended the District Magistrate to be a persona designata in this particular and special Act to mean the District Magistrate and not any Additional District Magistrate. The court also held that the power of delegation under Section 3 was intended by the Legislature to be exercised only by the District Magistrate.

Issues: Whether the District Magistrate, as contemplated under Section 3 of the U. P. (Temporary) Control of Rent and Eviction Act, 1947, includes an Additional District Magistrate.

Ratio Decidendi: The court interpreted that the Legislature intended the District Magistrate to be a persona designata in this particular and special Act to mean the District Magistrate and not any Additional District Magistrate. The court also held that the power of delegation under Section 3 was intended by the Legislature to be exercised only by the District Magistrate.

Final Decision: The court remanded the case back to the trial court to determine whether the District Magistrate had authorized the Additional District Magistrate or the City Magistrate to perform any or all the powers under Section 3 of the Act before the institution of the suit.

SAPRU, J.


( 1 ) THIS is a tenants appeal arising out of a suit for ejectment from a shop situate in the city of agra. The suit for ejectment was brought by the plaintiff with the permission of the Additional district Magistrate. The suit was resisted by the tenant on various grounds. But the ground with which we are concerned in the present case is that the landlord was not competent to bring the suit for ejectment inasmuch as the District Magistrate or any person authorised by him had not given the permission requisite for bringing a suit under Section 3, U. P. (Temporary) Control of bent and Eviction Act, 1947. Both the Courts decreed the plaintiffs suit and held that there was no force in the objection that the Additional District Magistrate was not competent to authorise the plaintiff to institute a suit for ejectment under Section 3 of the Act. The defendant has now come up in appeal to this Court.

( 2 ) THE question for consideration is whether the District Magistrate as contemplated under section 3 includes an Additional District Magistrate or not. Section 3 lays down that:

"no suit stall, without the permission of the District Magistrate, be filed in any civil Court against a tenant for his eviction from any accommodation. . . . "

It will be noticed that the article which qualifies the District Magistrate is the. There is no definition of the District Magistrate in the General Clauses Act. There is a definition of a District magistrate in Section 10, Criminal P. C. Clause (i) of Section 10, Criminal P. C. lays down that:"in every district outside the Presidency-towns the Provincial Government shall appoint a magistrate of the first class, who shall be called the District Magistrate. "

In other words, this section makes it obligatory on the State Government to appoint in every district a Magistrate who shall be different from other Magistrates inasmuch as he shall be the cheif Magistrate of the District.

( 3 ) CLAUSE (2) of Section 10 of this Code authorises the Provincial Government to appoint any magistrate of the first class to be an Additional District Magistrate and such Additional District magistrate shall have all or any of the powers of a District Magistrate under this Code or under any other law for the time being in force, as the Provincial Government may direct. Though additional District Magistrates can be vested with all the powers of a District Magistrate under the Code of Criminal Procedure or under any other law for the time being in force as the State government may direct they are not exactly District Magistrates.

( 4 ) CLAUSE (3) of Section 10 of the Code makes id clear that for certain purposes these Additional district Magistrates are deemed to be Subordinate to the District Magistrate. What Clause (3)does is to invest the District Magistrate with powers to transfer cases pending before one additional District Magistrate to another Additional District Magistrate or some other Magistrate or allow appeals to be heard by one or the other of the Additional District Magistrates or magistrates in his district or withdraw cases from the Court of one Additional District Magistrate or a Magistrate. Clause (3) makes it thus abundantly plain that there is a difference between the district Magistrate who is the principal executive officer in the District and Additional District magistrates. They are not considered as exactly identical in all respects.

( 5 ) CLAUSE (d) of Section 2, U. P. (Temporary) Control of Rent and Eviction Act, 1947, defines the District Magistrate as including a person authorised by the District Magistrate to perform any of his functions under this Act. Now it is to be noted that the Legislature does not say that the dis-trict Magistrate includes an Additional District Magistrate as also an officer authorised by the District Magistrate to perform any of his functions under this Act. In other words, reading the reference to the District Magistrate in Section 3 in the light of the definition











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