NARAYAN NAMA PHULWARE Vs. GODAVARI PANDURANG ANGRE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) BY this petition filed under Section 227 of the Constitution of India, the petitioners have impugned decree dated 16th February, 1981 passed in Civil Appeal No. 32 of 1978 by the learned Assistant Judge, Raigad, arising from Regular Civil Suit No. 65 of 1973 filed by the petitioners against the Respondent in the Court of Civil Judge, Junior Division, Panvel.

(2.) IT is extremely unfortunate that this litigation arising out of suit for eviction filed on the ground of reasonable and bonafide requirement invoking Section 13(1)(g) of the Bombay Rents, Hotel and Lodging House Rates Control Act, 1947 (hereinafter referred to as the Act) has remained pending for so long. The suit was instituted by the plaintiffs in the year 1973. The writ petition was filed by the petitioners-plaintiffs on 15th June, 1981 and is being heard and disposed of in the month of December, 1991.

(3.) THE plaintiff No. 5 is one of the co-owners of the suit property. The suit for eviction on the ground of reasonable and bonafide requirement in terms of Section 13(1)(g) of the Act was maintainable in law if the plaintiff No. 5 factually proved her reasonable and bonafide requirement. Merely because the plaintiff No. 1 alone recovers the rent on behalf of the estate, it does not follow that the personal requirement of plaintiff No. 5 is irrelevant and foreign to the statute. It was, therefore, unnecessary for the appeal Court below to go into the question as to whether plaintiff No. 5 could be considered as a member of the family of plaintiff No. 1. The plaintiff No. 5 could seek eviction of the tenant in her own right on the ground of reasonable and bonafide requirement, provided the plaintiff No. 5 proves her requirement and all the ingredients required to be established for making out a case under Section 13(1)(g) of the Act. In any event, it cannot be stated as a matter of law that the widowed sister can never be considered as a member of the landlord's family. If the widowed sister of the landlord is uncomfortable at her in laws' place and is virtually at mercy at the place of her husband's relatives and has a genuine desire to reside in the premises near to the premises of her brother, personal requirement of widowed sister of the landlord shall have to be considered also on the footing that the widowed sister of the landlord is a member of the landlord's family in broader sense of the term. In a given situation where the widowed sister is not one of the co-owners on the property, her brother who may be the sole owner of the property shall be entitled to file a suit for eviction of the tenant invoking Section 13(1)(g) of the act and obtain a decree for eviction provided the reasonably and bonafide requirement of the widowed sister is proved. The Court must be satisfied that the widowed sister has a bonafide need and she reasonable desires to stay with her brother and other members of the family. The appellate Court below committed error of law apparent on the face of the record while holding that the suit for eviction passed on the ground of reasonable and bonafide requirement of the plaintiff No. 5 was not maintainable in law. The suit was undoubtedly maintainable in law.