Case Note & Summary
The plaintiff, Mahendra Valji Rathod, filed a Civil Revision Application under Section 115 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908, challenging the judgment and decree dated 07.10.2009 passed by the Appellate Bench of the Small Causes Court at Bandra, Mumbai in Appeal No.129 of 2008. The Appellate Court had allowed the appeal of the defendants, National Radio and Electronics Company, and set aside the trial court's decree dated 30.01.2008 in T.E.&R. Suit No.27/30 of 2002, thereby dismissing the suit for recovery of possession of flats No.4 and 6 in the building 'Girishant'. The plaintiff contended that the original owner, Dayabhai Tuljaram Desai, had entered into an agreement with the defendants on 19.01.1965 for a construction loan, granting a 20-year lease of the suit premises at a monthly rent of Rs.675/-. The plaintiff claimed that after Dayabhai's death, his widows executed a partition deed in 1982, and the plaintiff purchased the suit premises from Nirmalaben's daughters in 1999. The plaintiff alleged that the defendants were in arrears of rent and had unlawfully sublet the premises, and that the lease had expired. The defendants argued that the lease was for a monthly tenancy and did not require registration, and that they had paid rent regularly. The trial court decreed the suit, but the Appellate Court reversed the decision. The High Court, in revision, examined the lease agreement and found that it created a monthly tenancy, which under Section 107 of the Transfer of Property Act, 1882, does not require registration. The court also noted that the defendants had been in continuous possession and had paid rent, and the plaintiff failed to prove any ground for eviction under the Bombay Rents, Hotel and Lodging House Rates Control Act, 1947. The High Court held that the Appellate Court's findings were based on evidence and did not suffer from any jurisdictional error. Consequently, the Civil Revision Application was dismissed, affirming the Appellate Court's decision.
Headnote
A) Transfer of Property Act - Lease - Registration - Section 107 - Monthly Tenancy - Lease deed for a monthly tenancy is not required to be registered under Section 107 of the Transfer of Property Act, 1882, as it is not a lease from year to year or for a term exceeding one year. The court held that the agreement dated 19.01.1965 created a monthly tenancy, and thus registration was not mandatory. (Paras 10-12) B) Bombay Rents, Hotel and Lodging House Rates Control Act, 1947 - Eviction - Lawful Possession - Sections 12 and 13 - Tenant in possession under a valid lease agreement cannot be evicted unless grounds under the Act are made out. The court held that the defendants were in lawful possession under the lease agreement and the plaintiff failed to prove any ground for eviction. (Paras 13-18) C) Civil Procedure Code, 1908 - Revision - Section 115 - Scope - The High Court's revisional jurisdiction under Section 115 CPC is limited to jurisdictional errors. The court held that the Appellate Court's findings were based on evidence and did not suffer from any jurisdictional error warranting interference. (Para 19)
Issue of Consideration
Whether the lease agreement dated 19.01.1965, being for a monthly tenancy, required registration under Section 107 of the Transfer of Property Act, 1882, and whether the defendants were liable for eviction under the Bombay Rents, Hotel and Lodging House Rates Control Act, 1947.
Final Decision
The High Court dismissed the Civil Revision Application, upholding the Appellate Court's judgment and decree dated 07.10.2009, which had dismissed the plaintiff's suit for possession.
Law Points
- Lease deed for monthly tenancy need not be registered
- Section 107 Transfer of Property Act
- 1882
- Section 115 CPC
- Section 12 Bombay Rents
- Hotel and Lodging House Rates Control Act
- 1947
- Section 13 Bombay Rents
