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1975 Supreme(All) 372

Allahbad High Court
GOPINATH
Brij Kishore - Appellant
Versus
Mushtari Khatoon - Respondent
Decided On : 10/28/1975

Advocates:
K.C. Saxena, for Appellant; K.P. Singh, for Respondent.

Headnote:

LANDLORD AND TENANT - FORFEITURE OF TENANCY - DENIAL OF TITLE - REQUISITES - U.P. TEMPORARY CONTROL OF RENT AND EVICTION ACT, 1947, SEC. 3(F) - TRANSFER OF PROPERTY ACT, 1882, SEC. 111(G).

Fact of the Case:

The plaintiff, Smt. Mushtari Khatoon, filed two suits against her tenants, Ishtiaq Ahmad and Brij Kishore, seeking to evict them from her shops on the ground that they had forfeited their tenancy by denying her title. The tenants had alleged in their suits that the sale deed in the name of Smt. Mushtari Khatoon was benami and the real owners were her husband and sons.

Finding of the Court:

The court held that the tenants had not forfeited their tenancy by denying the title of the landlady. The court found that the tenants had accepted that the plaintiff was the landlady, paid rent to her, and obtained receipts from her. The court also found that the tenants had clarified their position in their reply to the notice and had tendered two months' rent by money order to the plaintiff.

Issues: 1. Whether the tenants had forfeited their tenancy by denying the title of the landlady? 2. Whether the amendment of the pleadings in the tenants' suits helped them in regard to forfeiture?

Ratio Decidendi: 1. The court held that the tenants had not forfeited their tenancy because they had not unequivocally or unambiguously denied the landlady's title. The court found that the tenants had accepted that the plaintiff was the landlady, paid rent to her, and obtained receipts from her. The court also found that the tenants had clarified their position in their reply to the notice and had tendered two months' rent by money order to the plaintiff. 2. The court held that the amendment of the pleadings in the tenants' suits did not help them in regard to forfeiture because the cause of action had accrued to the landlady before the amendment.

Final Decision: The court dismissed the plaintiff's suits for eviction and ordered that the parties bear their own costs.

JUDGMENT:- These are two connected second appeals arising out of two suits filed by Smt. Mushtari Khatoon the plaintiff appellant in Second Appeal No. 3009 of 72 and the plaintiff respondent in Second Appeal No. 119 of 72. It appears that there were two shops in a building which were leased out to two persons. Ishtiaq Ahmad the defendant respondent in Second Appeal No. 3009 of 72 is the tenant of one shop and Brij Kishore the defendant appellant in Second Appeal No. 119 of 72 is the tenant of the other shop. The plaintiff Smt. Muslitari Khatoon had given notices to the two tenants to vacate the premises temporarily for a short period so that the shops may be reconstructed as they appeared to be in a damaged condition requiring repair, and alteration and reconstruction of the same. On the notices issued the two tenants filed two injunction suits restraining Smt. Musbtari Khatoon from demolishing the property or taking any steps to reconstruct the same. Suit No. 417 of 68 was filed by Ishtiaq Ahmad while Suit No. 418 of 68 was filed by Brij Kishore. In the plaint of these two suits Ishtiaq Ahmad and Brij Kishore stated inter alia that the property in dispute was actually purchased by the husband and the sons of Smt. Mushtari Khatoon though in her name and they were the real owners, but since the sale deed was in the name of Smt. Mushtari Khatoon the rent was being paid to her and she was issuing receipts to them. On this allegation in the plaint Smt. Mushtari Khatoon issued a notice terminating the tenancy of the two tenants on the ground that they had denied her title and forfeited their tenancy. This notice was given to both the tenants on 14-11-1968. The tenants replied to the notice immediately thereafter stating that they never denied the plaintiff's title or renounced their character as her tenants. The reply is Exh. A12. They sent two months rent to Smt. Mushtari Khatoon thereafter by a money order treating her as their landlady. The money order was refused. The tenants thereafter deposited the rent under Sec.7-C of the U. P. Temporary Control of Rent and Eviction Act in the name of the landlady Smt. Mushtari Khatoon. These deposits are evidenced by Exts. A1 to A11. The tenants thereafter moved an application for amendment of the plaint to the effect that Smt. Mushtari Khatoon was the owner of the property in dispute and the allegations which in her opinion cast a doubt on her title may be deleted, learned Munsif allowed the amendment. The amended plaint was to the following effect:-

"That the defendant No. 1 was the owner of the shop in dispute and the defendants Nos. 2 to 5 realised the rent from the plaintiff but the receipt was issued under the signature of defendant No. 1."

2. The suits giving rise to the instant appeals were filed prior to the amendment of the plaint on the basis of the allegations made in Suit Nos. 417 and 418 of 1968 that the sale deed in the name of Smt. Mushtari Khatoon was benami and the real owners were her husband and her sons. The ejectment of the tenants was claimed on the ground of forfeiture of their tenancy by the denial of the title of the landlady.

3. The defence delivered in the two suits was that the defendants had not denied the landlady's title. They had only given their impression about the nature of the sale transaction and they had in fact been paying rent to her and she had been issuing receipts to them. The defendants further pleaded that the required notice terminating their tenancy under the Transfer of property Act had not been given and the suits thus could not be decreed. Suit No. 2 of 1969 was filed against Brij Kishore defendant appellant in S.A. No. 119 of 72 and Suit No. 3 of 69 was filed against Ishtiaq Ahmad defendant respondent in S.A. No. 3009 of 72. Suit No. 3 of 69 was dismissed by both the courts on the ground that a notice under Section 111(g) of the Transfer of Property Act terminating the defendants' tenancy on the ground of denial of the landlady's title was n
























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