GULAM HUSSEIN KALUMIA Vs. MAHOMED UMAR AZIZULLA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE question that arises in this Civil Revision application is with regard to the power possessed by the Court in relieving a tenant against forfeiture entailed by reason of his failure to pay rent in due time. It is not necessary to state all the facts. It would be sufficient to state that the landlord filed a suit against his tenant for eviction on two grounds: (1) that he needed the premises for his own bona fide requirements, and (2) that the tenant was in arrears of rent. The trial Court held against the landlord on the first ground. On the second ground it held that the tenant was in arrears of rent and decreed the suit. In appeal, the learned District Judge reversed the decision of the trial Court and relieved the tenant against forfeiture.

(2.) IT is a well established principle of law that provisions with regard to relief against forfeiture must be liberally construed. Under English Law, relief is granted on principles of equity and the Equity Courts have always assumed wide powers in relieving a tenant against the consequences of his default in paying the rent. It is true that under the Rent Act we are not concerned with any equitable principles. The principles are embodied in the sections of the Act and what the Court has got to do is to construe those sections.

(3.) IT is urged by Mr. Vakil that, assuming that the trial Court had not exercised its discretion, it was not competent to the Appellate Court to exercise that discretion. The matter should have been remanded to the trial Court for the exercise of its discretion. Now, that proposition is not sound in law. If a trial Court is vested with a discretion and an appeal lies from the decision of the trial Court, the discretion is subject to appeal. The Appellate Court has a right to interfere with that discretion, although ordinarily it would not do so, and therefore, if the trial Court fails to exercise its discretion, the Appellate Court has equally the power to exercise the discretion itself. The discretion being subject to the appeal, the Appellate Court has the samepowers which the trial Court has.