S.N. DAGA Vs. ANJALI GANGOPADHYAY

JUDGEMENT

(1.) IN this Rule under sub-section 9 of Section 29-B of the West Bengal Premises Tenancy Act, 1956 (hereinafter referred to as the said Act) the petitioner has impeached an order dated 8th August, 1983, passed in Ejectment Case No. 11 of 82 (E.V.C.) by the learned Rent Controller, Calcutta and whereby an application made under Order 6, Rule 17 of the Code of Civil Procedure as preferred by the opposite party, was allowed.

(2.) THE petitioner has stated that Shri Puranjan Mukherjee, since deceased, in or about 1970, inducted him as a tenant in respect of the entire ground floor of Premises No. 18/79, Dover Lane, Calcutta-700029, at a monthly rent of Rs. 300/- payable according to English calender month. It was his case that the said Puranjan Mukherjee died on or about 25th June, 1978 and after his death, the petitioner was informed by Dr. Prodosh Ranjan Mukherjee the son of the deceased, by the letter of 16th September, 1978, that the said Puranjan Mukherjee died intestate and the said Dr. Prodosh Ranjan Mukherjee and Smt. Anjali Gangopadhyay were his only heirs and legal representatives. By the said letter, the petitioner has claimed to have been required to pay rent either to one Shri Prodosh Ranjan Mukherjee or in his absence to Borada Prosad Roy. The petitioner has stated that since he had no reason or occasion to suspect any foul play in the letter or also to suspect the bonafide of that letter, he went on paying rent as directed and in return, received rent receipts signed by P.R. Mukherjee. It was his case, that some time at the end of March, 1982, he received a lawyer's letter written under the instructions of the said Dr. Prodosh Ranjan Mukherjee, calming himself to be the Executor of an alleged Will of late Puranjan Mukherjee and thereby, he was for the first time informed that the opposite party, Anjali Gangopadhyay, was one of the legatees of the last Will of the said deceased and she reasonably required the premises in question, as occupied by the petitioner. As such, the petitioner was asked to quit and vacate the premises by the expiry of April, 1982. It was been stated that in the schedule of the concerned letter, the extent of the tenancy was described as one flat i.e., entire ground floor except one room, inclusive of privy, kitchen and bath-room. It was the petitioner's further case that inspite of such notice, which he claimed to be a purported one, rents as tendered by him were accepted by Shri P.R. Mukherjee, on behalf of the estate of late Puranjan Mukherjee, as before, and this continued till the month of August, 1982. It has been alleged that from September, 1982 onwards, the representative as mentioned above, refused to accept rent, whereupon the petitioner addressed a letter on 26th September, 1982 to the heirs of his land lord as mentioned above, asking them the reason for such refusal of accepting the rent. It was the petitioner's further case that none of the addressed even cared to reply to the said letter, although they had duly received such communication.

(3.) ON service of summons, the petitioner has claimed to have been duly entered into appearance and filed an application supported by an affidavit, praying for leave to contest the concerned application under Section 29-B of the said Act. It has also been stated that as the petitioner was not served with the copies of the documents purported to have been annexed with the said application under Section 29-B of the said Act and neither the opposite party herein had filed the probated Will nor the certified copy of the same with her application, the petitioner also prayed for leave to file an additional application, after those records were either produced or given inspection of. It has been stated in fact, the petitioner was served with those records, which included a Xerox copy of the purported last Will and testament of Puranjan Mukherjee and that too without the plan or map as referred to therein and according to which, there were allotments made to different legatees, including the opposite party.