AZHIKODE SERVICE CO OP BANK LTD Vs. NARAYANAN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) These three revision petitions under S.20 of the Kerala Buildings (Lease and Rent Control) Act, 1965 (for short 'the Act') arise from a common judgment of the Rent Control Appellate Authority, Thalassery dated 6th July, 1993. The revision petitioner in all these cases is the Azhikode Service Cooperative Bank Ltd. who is the landlord of three separate non residential buildings independently rented out to different tenants who are now sought to be evicted from their respective buildings.

(2.) The landlord filed separate petitions for eviction of all the tenants under S.11(3) of the Act The identical ground urged in the petitions for eviction by the landlord in all the three petitions is this:

(3.) As against the above common order of the Rent Control Court, the landlord filed an appeal under S.18 of the Act before the Rent Control Appellate Authority. A new contention was advanced by the landlord in these appeals that the appellant Cooperative Bank is a 'Public Institution' as contemplated under sub-s.(7) of S.11 of the Act and therefore the landlord is entitled to get an order of eviction. However, the appellate authority found that the Cooperative Bank indulging in commercial, trading or banking activity cannot satisfy the test of being 'other public institutions' like religious, charitable or educational institutions contemplated under sub-s.(7) of S.11. The Appellate Authority however found that the landlord had failed to establish the bona fide need whether the claim be construed as one under S.11(3) or as one under S.1(7). In that view of the matter, the appeals filed by the landlord were dismissed by the Appellate Authority as per the common judgment against which these revisions are filed.