DAMODAR VALLEY CORPORATION Vs. MRITYUNJAY BASU

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This appeal under Clause 15 of the Letters Patent is against judgment dated 24th April '98 passed by a learned single Judge of this court in Matter No. 2585 of 1986. Brief facts leading to the filing of the appeal are that the respondent Mrityunjay Basu being the Receiver of the property at 10, Belvedere Road, Alipore, Calcutta-27 filed a writ application under Article 226 of the Constitution against the appellant Damodar Valley Corporation and others with regard to the enhancement of the rent for the period 1983 to 1997 on the ground that the lease held by the appellant in respect of the property in question had expired on 30th November, 1983 and that thereafter the appellant was liable to pay rent at increased rate till the date of the vacation of the property by the appellant (October-1996 partly; and March 1997 fully). Following reliefs were claimed in the writ application by the writ petitioner :

(2.) The appellant was the tenant of the landlords in respect of the property in question. The original Lease Deed as executed in 1977 had fixed rent at the rate of Rs. 2.30 per Sft. of the covered area. At the expiry of the Original Lease period some correspondent was exchanged between the tenant and the landlords and/or Receiver regarding the renewal of the Lease Deed for a further period on agreed terms and conditions. It was in the course of this correspondence that the writ petitioner suggested enhancement of the rent from Rs. 2.30 per Sft. to Rs. 8.40 per Sft. per month. Such enhancement proposal was contained in the letter dated 1st October 1983 sent by the writ petitioner to Respondent No. 1. It also appears that ultimately the appellant did not agree with any proposal for any enhancement of the rent and took a stand that the appellant was protected under law as a tenant to occupy the premises at the same terms and conditions as were originally agreed between the parties in the Lease Deed as executed in 1977, including the terms and conditions relating to the payment of the monthly rent @ Rs. 2.30 per Sft. Aggrieved, the writ petitioner as noticed above, came up to this court by filing writ application under Article 226 of the Constitution. On 23rd June 1992 and order was passed by the learned single Judge whereby Rent Controller having territorial jurisdiction over the property in question was directed to fix the rent of the said premises being totally uninfluenced by the provisions of the Statute. It was also recorded in that order that the parties had agreed to abide by the decision of the Rent Controller regarding the assessment of the rent. This order forming the starting point of the developments leading to the filing of the present appeal, being very relevant may be re-produced as under :-

(3.) The appellants, aggrieved of the aforesaid order filed Appeal No. 568 of 1992 and the Division Bench of this court vide Judgment dated 8th December 1994 set aside the aforesaid order of the learned single Judge by making the following observations and issuing hereinbelow directions :