SupremeToday Landscape Ad
Back
Next
Judicial Analysis Court Copy Headnote Facts Arguments Court observation
Listen Article Pause Article
judgment-img

1964 Supreme(All) 107

Allahbad High Court
GANGESHWARPRASAD
Ram Raksh Pal - Appellant
Versus
Brij Nandan Swarup - Respondent
Decided On : 07/08/1964

Advocates:
N. Lal, for Appellant:V.B. Gupta, for Respondent.

The permission to sue for eviction granted under Section 3 of the U. P. Rent Control and Eviction Act, 1947, enures for the benefit of the landlord's successor-in-interest and cannot be waived by mere inaction or acceptance of rent.

Headnote:

U. P. RENT CONTROL AND EVICTION ACT, 1947 - SECTION 3 - PERMISSION TO SUE FOR EVICTION - BENEFIT ENURES TO SUCCESSOR-IN-INTEREST - WAIVER - NOT INFERRED FROM MERE INACTION OR ACCEPTANCE OF RENT.

Fact of the Case:

Landlord Shanti Swaroop obtained permission from the Rent Control and Eviction Officer to sue for eviction of his tenant, Brij Nandan Swarup. However, Shanti Swaroop did not take any action and later sold the accommodation to Ram Rakshpal, the plaintiff. The plaintiff served a notice demanding arrears of rent and terminating the tenancy, but the defendant did not vacate the premises. The plaintiff filed a suit for eviction, rent, and damages.

Finding of the Court:

The court held that the permission granted to Shanti Swaroop to sue for eviction enured for the benefit of the plaintiff, his successor-in-interest. The court also held that there was no waiver of the permission by Shanti Swaroop or the plaintiff, and that the plaintiff was entitled to a decree for eviction and damages for use and occupation.

Issues: 1. Whether the permission to sue for eviction granted to Shanti Swaroop enured for the benefit of the plaintiff, his successor-in-interest? 2. Whether there was a waiver of the permission by Shanti Swaroop or the plaintiff?

Ratio Decidendi: 1. The permission to sue for eviction granted under Section 3 of the U. P. Rent Control and Eviction Act, 1947, is not a personal right confined to the person to whom it was granted, but enures for the benefit of the landlord's successor-in-interest. 2. Waiver of a right cannot lightly be inferred, and mere inaction or acceptance of rent does not amount to waiver of the permission to sue for eviction.

Final Decision: The appeal was allowed, the decree of the lower appellate court was set aside, and the suit was decreed in its entirety.

JUDGMENT :- This second appeal arises out of a suit brought by the landlord of an accommodation for ejectment of his tenant and for rent and damages.

2. One Shanti Swaroop was originally the owner of the accommodation and Brij Nandan Swarup alias Brij Naridan Lal defendant occupied the accommodation as a tenant on his behalf on a monthly rent of Rs 10. Shanti Swaroop made an application to the Rent Control and Eviction Officer for permission to bring a suit for the eviction of the tenant. The Rent Control and Eviction Officer passed an order on the basis of a compromise between Shanti Swaroop and the defendant granting permission to Shanti Swaroop to bring a suit for eviction of the defendant in case the defendant failed to vacate the house by 31st July, 1957. The defendant did not, however, vacate the house. Shanti Swaroop did not take any proceeding for the eviction of the defendant and on 17th April 1958 he sold the accommodation to Ram Rakshpal plaintiff. On 6-12-1958 the plaintiff served upon the defendant a notice demanding arrears of rent and terminating the tenancy of the defendant.

The arrears, according to the plaintiff, covered a period of more than three months. Since the arrears were not paid and the accommodation was not vacated by the defendant, the plaintiff brought the suit out of which this appeal has arisen. The defence was that the plaintiff was not entitled to sue for eviction on the basis of the permission granted to Shanti Swaroop and that the defendant had made no default in payment of rent. The trial Court decreed the suit but on appeal the learned Temporary Civil Judge modified the decree of the trial Court and dismissed the suit in so far as the reliefs for ejectment and recovery of damages for use and occupation were concerned. The plaintiff has come in appeal to this Court.

3. The main question that has to be considered in this appeal is whether the permission to bring a suit for eviction of the defendant granted to Shanti Swaroop would enure for the benefit of the plaintiff also and whether the plaintiff can succeed in evicting the defendant on the basis of that permission irrespective of the question of default by the defendant in payment of rent in spite of the notice of demand. On this question both the Courts below have taken the view that the benefit of the permission granted to Shanti Swaroop cannot be availed of by the plaintiff. The learned counsel for the plaintiff contended that the Courts below were in error in taking this view and that the plaintiff could sue for eviction on the basis of the permission granted to Shanti Swaroop. I think that the contention of the learned counsel is well founded.

4. In the case of Sajjan Singh v. Smt. Jamuna Bala Devi, AIR 1960 All 410 it was certainly held by Dhavan, J. that a permission granted to the landlord under S. 3 of the U. P. Rent Control and Eviction Act confers upon him a personal right which is not transferable to his successor-in-interest. This view was, however, not accepted by a Division Bench of this Court in Rameshwar Dayal v. Smt. Mohania, 1963 All LJ 198 and it was held that the person, who applies for a permission under S. 3 of the U. P. Rent Control and Eviction Act, does so in his capacity as a landlord and the permission is granted to him in the same capacity in order to enable him to obtain possession of the accommodation by the eviction of the tenant occupying it. According to the Division Bench there is no question of conferring any personal right in the grant of a permission and the benefit of the permission cannot, therefore, be confined to the person to whom the permission was granted. The Bench also observed that if a permission is obtained by a landlord as a landlord there appears no reason why it should come to an end on his death and it should not enure for the benefit of the person who succeeds him as a landlord.

What is true of an heir after the death of the landlord appears to me to be equally true of a purchaser from him





Click Here to Read the rest of this document

1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
SupremeToday Portrait Ad
supreme today icon
whatsapp-icon Back to top