CHENNICHI ALIAS PARIKKAL, WIFE OF MARIAPPA GOUNDAR Vs. D.A. SRINIVASAN CHETTIAR S/O. ARUNACHALA CHETTIAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE tenant is the petitioner in this Civil Revision Petition. He took on lease a piece of Vacant land under a Chit dated 26th September, 1957, for a period of three years, for the purpose of putting up a homestead from the respondent herein. The petitioner agreed to have the superstructure removed at the time of the termination of the lease and to pay a rent Rs. 9 per month and, in case he committed default, to pay rent at the rate of Rs. 10 per month. The tenant having committed default in payment of the rent accrued due from 26th March, 1964, the respondent laid a suit in ejectment in O.S. No. 277 of 1964 on the file of the Court of the District Munsif, Dharmapuri. The petitioner herein raised various contentions one among which was that the civil Court had no jurisdiction and that, once a vacant parcel of land is taken on lease for the specified purpose of putting up a building and a building has been put up, the land becomes an integral part of the building and the tenant cannot be evicted otherwise than under the provisions of the Madras Buildings (Lease and Rent Control) Act. This contention was based upon two decisions of this Court, Palaniappa Chettiar v. Vairavan Chettiar (1962) 75 L.W. 21 and Palaniappa Chettiar v. Sheik Mydeen Sahib : (1964) 77 L.W. 551. The trial Court decreed the suit. On appeal, the appellate Court accepted the contention of the petitioner and dismissed the suit, and that decision of the appellate Court has become final.

(2.) THEREAFTER , the respondent filed R.C.O.P. No. 18 of 1967 on the file of the Rent Controller, Dharmapuri. Before the Rent Controller, the petitioner took up the plea that the Rent Controller had no jurisdiction. This contention was advanced in view of the fact that during the interval, the Supreme Court had not affirmed the view taken by this Court in the decisions referred to already and in view of the decision of the Supreme Court a different view was taken by this Court itself in Kantian V. Muthiah Chettiar : (1968)2MLJ631 . The Rent Controller took the view that the petitioner herein having originally contended that the civil Court had no jurisdiction, it was not open to him to contend that the Rent Controller also had no jurisdiction and only the civil Court had jurisdiction. In this view, he allowed the petition filed by the respondent and ordered eviction of the petitioner herein. Against that order of the Rent Controller, the petitioner preferred CM.A. No. 46 of 1968 before the appellate Authority, viz., the District Judge, Dharmapuri. The learned District Judge, by his judgment and order dated 28th March, 1969, dismissed the appeal. It is to revise the order in appeal of the appellate authority, viz., the District Judge, Dharmapuri, the present civil revision petition has been filed.

(3.) LEARNED Counsel for the petitioner contends that, in view of the subsequent decision of the Supreme Court as well as of this Court, the Rent Controller has no jurisdiction to order eviction and where only a vacant piece of land is taken on lease for the purpose of putting up a building it is only the Civil Court which will have jurisdiction.