BHAGWAN SINGH Vs. SURJIT KAUR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS is defendant's appeal arising out of a suit for recovery of arrears of rent, damages and eject ment.

(2.) ONE Harbaksh Singh was the owner of the accommodation in dispute. On 17-1-1967. he sold the premises to Smt. Surjeet Kaur. the plaintiff-respond ent. A few days later i. e. on 25-3-1967 Harbaksh Singh executed another docu ment transferring the right to recover arrears of rent from the tenant, the ap pellants, to Smt. Surjeet Kaur. The plaintiff thereafter demanded rent and asked the appellant to pay the arrears of rent for the period from 1-4-1965. Having received no response, the plaintiff served a notice of demand and a notice to quit under Section 106 of the Transfer of Pro perty Act, upon the tenant. The defend ant remitted the rent that had fallen due for the period from 1-1-1967 to 30-4-1967 but did not pay the rent for the period upto 31-12-1966.

(3.) AGGRIEVED by this judgment and decree, the plaintiff went in appeal. The lower appellate court reversed the find ing and held that the defendant had failed to prove that he paid the arrears of rent to the previous owner. Relying upon the decision of a Division Bench in the case of Ram Prakash Ghai v. Karam Chand. 1962 All LJ 828 = (AIR 1963 All 47), it further held that by means of two sale deeds, the plaintiff became the land lord in relation to the rent that was due for the period upto 31-12-1966 and that the defendant tenant committed default under Section 3 (a) when he failed to tender the entire arrears of rent within 30 days of the notice of demand. On this finding, the decree was set aside and the suit for ejectment as well as for recovery of Rs. 294.76 P. as arrears of rent due from 1-5-1966 to 17-5- 1967 was decreed. It was directed that the plaintiff shall get mesne profits at the rate of Rs. 12/- per month from 18-5-1967 up to the date of the delivery of possession.