Tenancy Act provisions allow termination of tenancy for non-payment of rent, and courts require substantive justification for condonation of delays in filing appeals.

JUDGMENT :

1. Rule. Rule made returnable forthwith. With the consent of the learned Counsel for parties, Petition is taken up for hearing.

2. Petitioners challenge the Judgment and Order dated 12/11/2021 passed by the Maharashtra Revenue Tribunal (‘MRT’), Camp Kolhapur, allowing the Revision Application filed by Respondent No.1 and setting aside the order dated 23/11/2020 passed by the Sub-Divisional Officer (‘SDO’) condoning the delay in filing Tenancy Appeal No.71/2020. The MRT has rejected the application for condonation of delay filed by the Petitioners in Tenancy Appeal No.71/2020. That Tenancy Appeal was filed by the Petitioners challenging the order dated 28/05/2018 passed by the Agricultural Lands Tribunal-cum-Tehsildar (‘ALT’), Panhala.

3. Facts of the case are that Petitioners and Respondent Nos. 2 to 5 are tenants in respect of the land admeasuring 57 R of Gat No.103 and 4 Hector 10 R of Gat No.175 situated at Village Waloli, Tal. Panhala, Dist. Kolhapur. Respondent No.1 is the landlord in respect of that land.

4. Respondent No.1 filed Tenancy Case No.30/1985 under section 43B of The Maharashtra Tenancy and Agricultural Lands Act, 1948 (‘Tenancy Act’) before the Tehsildar for fixation of reasonable rent in respect of the land. The Tehsildar fixed the reasonable rent of Rs.6,379/- for the year 1985-86. Respondent No.1 challenged Tehsildar’s decision before the SDO. By the Order dated 16/03/1988, the SDO dismissed the Tenancy Appeal upholding the Order of the Tehsildar. Respondent No.1 thereafter filed Tenancy Revision Application No. 150/1989 before the MRT challenging the decisions of SDO and Tehsildar. The MRT allowed the Revision Application by the Order dated 25/01/2016 and fixed the rent in respect of the land @ Rs.10,000/- per year from the year 1985-86 onwards.

5. Despite fixation of rent @ Rs.10,000/- per year from 1985-86 onwards, Petitioners and Respondent Nos. 2 to 5 failed to pay the due amount of rent from the year 1985-86. Respondent No. 1 thereafter served Notice dated 30/06/2016 on tenants stating that an amount of Rs.2,87,500/- was due and payable towards the rent as on 31/05/2016. Respondent No.1 therefore terminated tenancy by giving 3 months’ notice i.e. w.e.f. 30^th June 2016. Despite receipt of notice, the tenants failed to pay the outstanding rent to Respondent No.1, who therefore filed Tenancy Case No.2/2017 before the ALT seeking possession of the land in question. The tenants resisted the said tenancy case by raising a vague defence that they had paid rent in respect of land from time to time, but Respondent No.1 had failed to issue receipts. The ALT-cum-Tehsildar passed order dated 28/05/2018 under the provisions of section 25(1) of the Tenancy Act holding that the amount of rent due and payable by the tenants to Respondent No.1 was Rs.3,15,250/- for the period 1985-86 to 2017-18. The ALT directed tenants to pay the amount of Rs.3,15,250/- within 3 months, failing which they would be removed from possession of the land, which would be put in the possession of Respondent No.1. The tenants neither paid the rent as directed by the Order dated 28/05/2018 nor challenged that order. After waiting for some time, Respondent No.1 filed Tenancy Application No.3/2018 seeking possession of land on account of failure to pay rent within the time stipulated in the Order dated 28/05/2018. Instead of paying the rent due, the Respondents resisted the said execution proceedings by filing reply. By Order dated 13/07/2019, the Tehsildar d