Carona Ltd vs M/S Parvathy Swaminathan & Sons

2. To appreciate the controversy raised in the present appeal, few relevant facts may be stated.

3. The appellant-tenant was the original defendant whereas the respondent-landlord was the original plaintiff in the suit instituted in the Court of Small Causes at Bombay. The landlord is a partnership firm registered under the Partnership Act, 1932. It owned a premises, bearing Shop No. 2, situated at ground floor of Plot No. 3, A.M. Ward, Chembur, Govind Road, Mumbai (hereinafter referred to as 'the suit premises'). According to the landlord, the suit premises was let out to the tenant. It was alleged that tenant was not paying rent regularly. It also initiated certain proceedings against the landlord. The landlord did not want the tenant to continue to occupy the suit premises. Accordingly, by a notice dated February 23, 2001, the landlord determined the tenancy with effect from March 31, 2001. In spite of determination of tenancy, the tenant did not hand over vacant and peaceful possession of the suit premises to the landlord. The landlord, therefore, filed a suit in the Small Causes Court, Bombay on April 2, 2001. In a written statement, dated August 1, 2001, the tenant disputed the averments made and allegations levelled by the landlord and contended that it was not liable to be evicted. The Small Causes Court, Bombay, however, passed a decree of eviction against the tenant on December 16, 2002 which was confirmed by a Bench of that Court as also by the High Court. The said order is challenged in the present appeal. INTERIM ORDER BY THIS COURT

4. On February 21, 2005, notice was issued by this Court. Status quo as regards possession was ordered to be maintained. On April 18, 2005, leave was granted. Pending appeal, stay of dispossession was continued subject to the tenant depositing a sum of Rs. twenty four lakhs with the Registry of the Court within eight weeks which was allowed to be withdrawn by the landlord without furnishing security. The matter was ordered to be placed for final hearing and that is how the matter is before us.

18. A Bench of Small Causes Court, Bombay confirmed the above order and dismissed the appeal. Before the High Court, again all the contentions were reiterated by the tenant, but the High Court negatived them and dismissed the writ petition. The High Court noted that it was not in dispute between the parties that notice terminating the tenancy was issued by the landlord on February 23, 2001 and tenancy was determined with effect from March 31, 2001. On that day, i.e. March 31, 2001, paid up share capital of the Company (tenant) was more than rupees one crore. If it were so, observed the High Court, Small Causes Court was right in proceeding with the matter and in passing the decree of eviction against the tenant.

40. The tenant took on lease the premises on January 1, 1960. He, however, sublet a part of the premises in August, 1965. The landlord issued a notice on April 1, 1967 and terminated the tenancy. The tenant denied that there was unlawful sub-letting of a part of the premises. It was further submitted that in any case, the so-called sub-tenant vacated the premises on April 14, 1967 i.e. before the suit was instituted by the landlord and hence, cause of action did not survive. It was contended on behalf of the tenant that Section 13(1)(e) used the expression "has sub-let", i.e. the present perfect tense which contemplated the event connected in some way with the present time. Since the sub-tenant had already vacated and left the premises, at the most it could be said that the tenant 'had sub-let' the premises but it was not a ground for eviction under the Act and hence no decree could have been passed. Reliance was also placed on an earlier decision of this Court in Goppulal v. Thakurji Shriji Shriji Dwarkadheshji, (1969) 3 SCR 989 : (1969) 1 SCC 792.

16. The courts below were, therefore, in our opinion, fully justified in proceeding to decide the matter on merits.

34. All the Courts were, therefore, in our considered opinion, right in holding that the provisions of the Rent Act were not applicable to the present case.

(emphasis supplied)

(emphasis supplied)

(emphasis supplied)

EQUITABLE CONSIDERATIONS

46. For the foregoing reasons, the appeal deserves to be dismissed and is, accordingly, dismissed with costs.