Appeal No 216 of 1984 From the Judgment and Order dated 11980 of the High Court of Punjab  Haryana at Chandigarh in RSA No 12676
Harbans Lal AK Goel for the Appellant AK Gauguli and AD Sikri for the Respondent
The Judgment of the Court was delivered by VRADARAJAN J
This appeal by special leave is by the plaintiff against the reversing judgment of the Punjab and Haryana High Court in RSA No 126 of 1979
The trial court had dismissed the suit but the learned Additional District Judge Patiala allowed the plaintiff s appeal and decreed the suit
The plaintiffappellant s case was that he had taken on lease under a lease deed dated 2681963 for a term of 10 years a plot of land measuring 51  x 118  situate near the Army Headquarters Lower Mall Patiala for Ms Jain Motor from its owner Lt Col Sadan Singh
He was only a partner of Ms Jain Motors in 1963 but later became its sole owner in 1967
The defendantrespondent took from the appellant on licence for one year under a deed dated 10121969 the suit shed for carrying on the work of repair of motors tractors etc
But since he did not vacate the shed after the expiry of the period he terminated the licence and filed the suit on 1521973 for a mandory injunction directing him to vacate the premises
The respondent opposed the suit contending that the appellant sub let to him a plot of land in 1966 67 and he has raised a new construction thereon and is carrying on workshop business therein since then
He further contended that the relationship between the parties was that of landlord and tenant and that the suit for mandatory injunction was not maintainable
The trial court found that Ms Jain Motors were the lessees and that the respondent become a sub tenant of a piece of land and constructed the suit shed thereon and that the suit for mandory injunction is not maintainable and dismissed the suit
In the appeal the learned Additional District Judge set aside the trial court s findings recorded in favour of the respondent and found that no rent is mentioned either in the document executed by the respon 187 dent in favour of the appellant or in the written statement and no rent receipt was produced by the respondent and that the relationship between the parries was only one of licensor and licensee
On the question of delay in filing the suit the learned Additional District Judge found that the partie remained busy in fighting out criminal cases till the end and that the present suit had been filed thereafter and there had been no undue delay and also that there was no challenge to the trial court s finding that the respondent had not put any construction of his own and held that the suit for mandatory injunction against the licensee is maintainable
On these findings he allowed the appeal and decreed the suit directing the respondent to deliver vacant possession of the shed in dispute to the appellant
In the second appeal the respondent filed an application for receiving as additional evidence a sale deed dated 278 1979 whereby he claimed to have purchased the entire property from its original owner
The High Court called for finding in that regard from the trial court which thereupon found that the respondent has purchased the property from its original owner by that sale deed
It was contended in the High Court that in view of that sales it is not open to the appellant to contend that the respondent in whom the title to the property has come to be vested after the date of the suit is liable to be ejected on the revocation of the license granted to him by the appellant
On the other hand it was contended for the appellant that the fact that the respondent had purchased the property from its owner subsequent to the grant of the licence in favour of the respondent does not make any difference to the appellant s claim for recovering possession of the suit shed and that it is obligatory on the respondent to first surrender possession of the property after the licence had been revoked and hen seek his remedy according to law on the basis of the title claimed by him
It was further contended that in view of the provisions ofs 13 of the East Punjab Rent Restrictions Act 1949 the appellant who was the tenant of the property under its original owner cannot be dispossessed except in accordance with the provisions of that Act
The learned Single Judge of the High Court rejected the appellant s contention that his rights under the lease by the original owner cannot be interfered with the provisions of the said Act observing that from the decisions referred to by him H 188 and the provisions of section 116 of the Indian Evidence Act it is clear that after the commencement of the tenancy or the licence a tenant or licensee who has purchased the property from its original owner cannot be evicted from that property on the lease or licence
He rejected the contention that the present suit for a mandatory injunction directing the respondent to vacate and hand over possession of the suit shed is in effect a suit for possession and he allowed the second appeal and set aside the judgment and decree of the learned Additional District Judge and restored the trial court s decree dismissing the suit
Now the parties are bound by the following factual findings recorded by the learned Additional District Judge in the first appeal namely 1 that the appellant who had become the sole proprietor of Ms Jain Motors in 1967 through at the time of the lease of the property by the original owner Lt Col Sadan Singh to Ms Jain Motors in 1963 he was only one of its partners was the lessee of the property 2 that the respondent had become a licensee of the suit shed under the appellant when the appellant was in possession of the whole of the demised premises including the suit shed as tenant under the original owner 3 that the licence in favour of the respondent had been revoked before the institution of the present suit and 4 that subsequent to the decision in the first appeal on 7121978 the respondent had purchased the entire property from the original owner by a sale deed dated 2781979
In these circumstances there is no merger of the lease of the whole property by its original owner in favour of the appellant by reason of the sale of the entire property by the original owner in favour of the respondent or of the licence given by the appellant to the respondent which had been revoked prior to the date of the suit
The lease in favour of the appellant continues and it is not disputed that under the Act of 1949 referred to above even the tenant of a vacant land in Patiala town cannot be evicted therefrom except in accordance with the provisions of that Act
In KK Verma  Anr
vs Union of India  Anr
13 Chagla CJ presiding over a Division Bench has observed that in India a landlord can only eject his erstwhile tenant by recourse to law and by obtaining a decree for ejectment
In Milkha Singh vs Dvna  Ors
2 it has 1 AIR 1954 Bombay 358 2 AIR 1964 Jammu  Kashmir 99 189 been observed that the principle once a licensee always a licensee would apply to all kinds of licences and that it cannot be said that the moment the licence it terminated the licensee s possession becomes that of a trespasser
In that case one of us Murtaza Fazal Ali J as he then was speaking for the Division Bench has observed After the termination of licence the licensee is under clear obligation to surrender his possession to the owner and if he fails to do so we do not see any reason why the licensee cannot be compelled to discharge this obligation by way of a mandatory injunction under section 55 of the Specific Relief Act
We might further mention that even under English law a suit for injunction to evict a licensee has always been held to be maintainable
Where a licensor approaches the court for an injunction within a reasonable time after the licence is terminated he is entitled to the injunction
On the other hand if the licensor causes huge delay the court may refuse the discretion to grant an injunction on the ground that the licensor had not been diligent and is that case the licensor will have to bring a suit for possession which will be governed by s7 v  of the Court Fees Act In the present case it has not been shown to us that the appellant had come to the court with the suit for mandatory injunction after any considerable delay which will disentitle him to the discretionary relief
Even if there was some delay we think that in a case of this kind attempt should be made to avoid multiplicity of suits and the licensor should not be driven to file another round of suit with all the attendant delay trouble and expense
1 he suit is in effect one for possession though couched in the form of a suit for mandatory injunction as what would be given to the plaintiff in case he succeeds is possession of the property to which he may be found to be entitled
therefore we are of the opinion that the appellant should not be denied relief merely because he had couched the plaint in the form of a suit for mandatory injunction
The respondent was a licensee and he must be deemed to be always a licensee
It is not open to him during the subsistence of 190 the licence or in the suit for recovery of possession of the property instituted after the revocation of the licence to set up title to the property in himself or anyone else
It is his plain duty to surrender possession of the property as a licence and seek his remedy separately in case he has acquired title to property subsequently through some other person
He need not do so if he has acquired title to the property from the licensor or from some one else lawfully claiming under him in which case there would be clear merger
The respondent has not surrendered possession of property to the appellant even after the termination of the licence and the institution Or the suit
The appellant is therefore entitled to recover possession of the property
We accordingly allow the appeal with costs throughout and direct the respondent to deliver possession of the property to the appellant forthwith failing which it will be open to the appellant to execute the decree and obtain possession
APJ Appeal allowed


Summary:
The appellant had taken a plot of land on lease under a lease deed for a term of 10 years for Ms Jain Motors
At that time he was only a partner of Ms Jain Motors but later he became its sole owner
The respondent took from the appellant on licence for one year under a deed the suitshed for carrying on work shop business Since he did not vacate the she dafter the expiry of the period the appellant terminated the licence and filed the suit for a mandatory injunction directing the respondent to vacate the premises
The respondent opposed the suit contending that the appellant sub let to him a plot of land and he had raised a new construction thereon and is carrying on workshop business and that the relationship between the parties was that of landlord and tenant and the suit for mandatory injunction was not maintainable
The trial court dismissed the suit for mandatory injunction as not maintainable
On appeal the Additional District Judge held that the relationship between the parties was only one of licensee and that suit for mandatory injunction was maintainable allowed the appeal decreed the suit and directed the respondent to deliver vacant possession of the shed
In the second appeal the respondent filed an application for receiving as additional evidence a sale deed dated 2781979 whereby he claimed to have purchased the entire property from its original owner
On a finding called for 185 by the High Court the trial court found that the respondent had purchased the property from its original owner by that sale deed
The High Court held that after the commencement of the tenancy or the license a tenant or licensee who has purchased the property from its original owner cannot be evicted from that property on the basis of the lease or laciness
The Second appeal was allowed the judgment and decree of the additional District Judge was set aside and the trial court s decree dismissing the suit was restored
Allowing the Appeal  HELD 1
There is no merger of the whole property by it original owner in favor of the appellant by reason of the sale of the entire property by too original owner in favor of the respondent or of the license given by the appellant to the respondent which had been revoked prior to the date of the suit
The lease in favor of the appellant continues and under the East Punjab Rent Restrictions Act 1949 even the tenant of a vacant land cannot be evicted therefrom except in accordance with the provisions of that Act
188F G KK Verma  Anr
vs Union of India  Anr AIR 1954 Bombay 358 Milka Singh vs Diana  Ors AIR 1964 Jammu  Kashmir 99 relied upon
In the instant case it has not been shown that the appellant had filed the suit for mandatory injunction after considerable delay which will disentitle him to the discretionary relief
Even if there was some delay in a case of this kind attempt should be made to avoid multiplicity of suits and the licensor should not be driven to file another suit with all the attendant delay trouble and expense
189E F 3
The suit is in effect one for possession though couched in the form of a suit for mandatory injunction as what would be given to the plaintiff in case he succeeds in possession of the property to which he may found to be entitled
Therefore the appellant should not be denied relief merely because he had couched the plaint in the form of a suit for mandatory injunction
189G  4
The respondent was a licensee and he must be deemed to be always a licensee
It is not open to him during the subsistence of the licence or in the licence or in the suit for recovery of possession of the property instituted after revocation of the licence to set up title to the property in himself or anyone else
It is his plain duty to surrender possession of the property as a licensee and seek his remedy separately in case he has acquired title to the property subsequently through some other person
He need not do so if he has acquired title to the property from the licensor or from some one else lawfully claiming under him in which case there would be clear merger
The respondent had not surrendered the possession of the property to the appellant even after the termination of the licence and the institution of the suit
The appellant is therefore entitled to recover possession of the property
The respondent is directed to deliver possession of the property to the appellant forthwith failing which it will be open to the appellant to execute the decree and obtain possession
189H 190A C 186