Case Note & Summary
The dispute arose from a suit for eviction filed by the landlord in 1977 against the tenant, claiming that the U.P. Urban Buildings (Regulation of Letting, Rent and Eviction) Act, 1972 did not apply to the building constructed in 1968. The tenant contended that the Act was applicable as the building was old and none of the grounds for eviction under Section 20(2) were satisfied. The Trial Court dismissed the suit, ruling that the Act applied. However, the IIIrd Additional District Judge reversed this decision, stating that the Act did not apply until 1.9.1978, and the suit was validly instituted before this date. The High Court later held that the Act applied to all buildings, including those constructed before its commencement, leading to the dismissal of the landlord's suit. The Supreme Court, upon appeal, examined the applicability of the Act, emphasizing that the ten-year exemption period from the date of construction completion was crucial. The court found that since the building was completed in 1968 and the suit was filed in 1977, the Act did not apply, and the suit should be resolved without reference to it. The court also noted that the expiration of the ten-year period during the litigation did not retroactively apply the Act. Ultimately, the Supreme Court allowed the appeal, restoring the decision of the IIIrd Additional District Judge and setting aside the High Court's ruling, with no orders as to costs.
Headnote
A) Landlord and Tenant Law - Applicability of Rent Control Legislation - Ten-Year Exemption - U.P. Urban Buildings (Regulation of Letting, Rent and Eviction) Act, 1972, Section 2(2) - The Act does not apply to buildings for ten years post-construction completion. The court held that since the building was completed in 1968 and the suit was filed in 1977, the Act was not applicable, and the suit should proceed without reference to it (Paras 353-355).
Issue of Consideration
Whether the U.P. Urban Buildings (Regulation of Letting, Rent and Eviction) Act, 1972 applied to the suit building given the ten-year exemption period and the timing of the suit's institution.
Final Decision
The Supreme Court allowed the appeal, restoring the decision of the IIIrd Additional District Judge and setting aside the High Court's ruling, concluding that the U.P. Urban Buildings Act did not apply to the building in question as it was constructed prior to the ten-year exemption period.
Law Points
- Applicability of U.P. Urban Buildings Act
- 1972
- Ten-year exemption period
- Transfer of Property Act
- 1882
- Section 106
- Grounds for eviction
