Mandatory compliance with the provision of issuing summons in the specified form as per Section 23-B of the Chhattisgarh Accommodation Control Act, 1961 is crucial, and the tenant's right to contest an eviction application within the stipulated time frame should be upheld.

D.R. Deshmukh, J.

1. Heard on application for amendment of the revision petition for raising additional grounds.

2. Prayer is not opposed. Amendment be incorporated today.

3. This revision was finally heard today.

4. The petition/tenant is aggrieved by the order dated 5-5-2007 passed by the Rent Controlling Authority, Bilaspur (hereinafter referred to as the RCA) in Case No. 2/A-90 (6)/2006-07, whereby the application filed by the petitioner/tenant under Section 23-C of the Chhattisgarh Accommodation Control Act, 1961 (henceforth 'the Act, 1961') for permission to contest the application for eviction was rejected on the ground that it was not filed within 15 days from the date of service of notice upon him.

5. Brief undisputed facts are that the respondent/landlord filed an application under Section 23-A of the Act, 1961 before the RCA for eviction of the petitioner/tenant on 30-12-2006. Summons to the tenant was not issued in the form specified in the 2nd Schedule to the Act, 1961. The petitioner/tenant appeared before the RCA on 19-1-2007 on which date he was supplied with a copy of the application filed under Section 23-A by the landlord. On 27-1-2007, the petitioner/tenant filed an application under Section 23-C of the Act, 1961 for permission to contest the application.

6. The RCA rejected the application under Section 23-C of the Act, 1961 dated 27-1-2007 filed by the petitioner/tenant as barred by limitation on the ground that the summons was served on the petitioner on 9-1-2007 and therefore, he ought to have moved an application under Section 23-C of the Act, 1961 within 15 days.

7. Shri N.L. Soni, learned Counsel for the petitioner argued that on an application being filed under Section 23-A of the Act, the RCA is under an obligation to issue summons to the petitioner/tenant in the form specified in the 2nd Schedule. It was further contended that Section 23-C of the Act, 1961 further stipulates that the right to file an application therein accrues to the tenant only upon service of summons in the form specified in the 2nd Schedule. Since no summons was issued in the form specified in the 2nd Schedule, the RCA erred in computing the period of 15 days provided under Sub-section (1) of Section 23-C of the Act, 1961 from the date of service of the summons on the petitioner/tenant on 9-1-2007. It was also urged that a copy of the application under Section 23-A of the Act, 1961 was not served along with the summons issued in a routine manner and only on first appearance before the RCA on 19-1-2007, the petitioner/tenant was supplied with a copy of the application under Section 23-A of the Act, 1961. In this manner, the application for permission to contest the application under Section 23-A of the Act, 1961 having been filed on 27-1-2007 was within limitation and the impugned order is liable to be set aside.

8. On the other hand, Shri R.K. Tiwari, learned Counsel for the respondent/landlord submitted that the petitioner/tenant did not raise any such ground mentioned above in his application dated 27-1-2007 before the RCA and therefore, the impugned order passed by the RCA could not be faulted with.

9. Having heard the rival submissions, I have perused the impugned order passed by the RCA. Chapter III-A of the Act, 1961 deals with eviction of tenants on grounds of "bona fide" requirement. Section 23-A of the Act, 1961 reads as under:

23-A. Special provision for eviction of tenant on ground of bonafide requirement.- Notwithstanding anything contained in any other law for the time being in force or contract to the contrary, a landlord may submit an application, signed and verified in a manner provided in Rules 14 and 15 of Order VI of the First Schedule to the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (V of 1908) as if it were a plaint to the Rent Controlling Authority on one or more of the following grounds for an order directing the tenant to put the landlord in possession of the accommodation, namely:

(a) that the accommodation let for resi