BENGAL IMMUNITY COMPANY LIMITED Vs. PARSURAM BEHERA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE petitioners in these six applications under Articles 226 and 227 of the Constitution of India are tenants against whom their respective land -lords filed proceedings under the Orissa House Rent Control Act, 1967 (hereinafter referred to as 'the Act') for eviction. The said proceedings stand at different stages; in four cases, namely, O. J, Cs. 1967/83, 1816/84, 2003/84 and 2030/84 final orders of eviction have bean passed against the petitioners, in the other two namely. O. J Cs. 2507/81 and 1217/82 the proceedings are pending before the House Rent Controller. In all these cases a common question relating to the jurisdiction of the authorities under the Act has been raised on behalf of the petitioners. The question is that the Orissa House Rent Control Act, 1967 (Orissa Act 4 of 1968 ) having spent its force by efflux of time on 3. 5.1981, the Orissa House Rent Control {Amendment) Act, 1981 (Orissa Act 15 of 1981) purporting to the extend of the life of the former Act till 4. 6. 1968 was in effective. Consequently, according to the petitioner; on and from 4th of May, 1981 there it no House Rent Control Act in force in the State and all proceedings thereunder, at whatever stage they may stand, have become none -est. In view of the seriousness of the question and the impact it is likely to have on the proceedings under the Act throughout the State, fairly lengthy arguments were advanced on behalf of both parties.

(2.) IN order to appreciate the contentions raised by the parties it would be helpfull to trace the history of legislation of the Orissa House Rent Control Act. The Orissa House Rent Control Act, (Orissa Act 31 of 1958) came in to force on 1st of January, 1959 within the municipal limits of the towns of Sambalpur, Berbampur and Cuttack. Section 1(4) of the Act provided that it shall cease to have effect on the expiry of 5 years from the date of its commencement except as respects things done or omitted to be done before the expiration there of and Section 5 of the Orissa General Clauses Act, 1937 shall apply upon the expiry of the Act as if it had then been repealed by an Orissa Act. By Section 2 of the Orissa House Rent Control {Amendment) Act, 1963 (Orissa Act 30 of 1963) the words 'five years' occurring in Sec 1(4) of the Orissa Act 31 of 1958 were substituted by the words 'eight years'. Thereafter by Section 2 of the Orissa House Rent Control (Amendment) Ordinance 1966 (Orissa Ordinance No. 5 of 1966 ) the words 'eight years' were substituted by the' words''eleven years'. Since the ordinance was to cease to operate at the expiration of six weeks from reassembly of the legislature, the Orissa House Rent Control Act, 1967 (Orissa Act 4 of 1968) was enacted. The said Act came into force retrospectively with effect from 4. 5. 1967 Section 1(4) of the Act provided that it shall erase to have effect on the expiry of seven years from the date of its commencement except as respects things done or omitted to be done before the expiration thereof and Section 5 of the Orissa General Clauses Act, 1937 shall apply upon the expiry of the Act as if it had then been repealed by an Oriasa Act. By Section 2 of the Orissa House Rent Control {Amendment) Act, 1974 (Orissa Act 10 of 1974 ) the words 'on the expiry of seven years from the date of its commencement' were substituted by the words 'on the 4th day of May 1981. Thereafter by Section 2 of the Orissa Reuse Rent Control (Amendment) Act, 1981 (Orissa Act 15 of 1981) the words and figures the 4th day of May, 1981, were substituted by the words 'the 4th day of May, 1988'. It is the enforceability of this Amendment Act which we are concerned with in the present cases. Orissa Act 15 of 1981 received the assent of the President of India on 2nd May, 1981 and it was published in the Orissa Gazette on 4. 5. 1981. According to the petitioners the Orissa House Rent Control Act, 1967 (Orissa Act 4 of 1968), as provided under Section 1(4) thereof and as amended by Orissa Act 10 of 1974 was to cease to have effect on the 4th day of May, 1981; Since on the 4th day of May, 1981 the Act had already ceased to have effect the amending Act, Orissa Act 15 of 1981, under which the life of former Act was intended to be extended till 4th May, 1988 could not achieve that purpose and hence was of no effect.

(3.) IN view of the rival contentions raised by the parties, the first question that falls for consideration is the meaning - of the words 'it shall cease to have effect on the fourth day of May, 1981', whether under Section 1(4) of the Act on 4. 5. 1981 the Act can be said to be in force or it ceased to have effect on expiry of midnight of the 3rd May, 1981. It is fairly well settled now that use of the words 'on' or 'from' is not conclusive in the matter of judging whether the day mentioned is intended to be included or to be excluded. It depends on the contest in which the word is used and the purpose for which the provision is enacted. It is a well settles canon of interpretation of statute that a beneficent statute is to receive a broad interpretation. Where the legislation is designed to give relief against certain kind of mischief the Court must construe the statute as to give meaning to it and not render it infractuous or redundant. For this purpose aid also can be taken from the objects and reasons of the Act. As it is stated in the Act, the Orissa House Rent Control Act, 1967 is an act to provide to control house rent in the State of Orissa. It is a well recognised position that the rent control legislations have been brought on the statute book with the avowed object of ameliorating the lot of tenants by affording them remedies against the rent demanded by the landlords. The state is a piece of social legislation aimed at ceasing the problem of accommodation protecting the tenants from eviction inspired by profit hunted motives and to provide certain safeguards for the tenants. While not completely overlooking the interest, of the landlord which is apparent from the provisions to the effect that under certain conditions a clear right to the landlord is granted to seek eviction on proving the grounds stated in the section. The statute with which we are concerned in the present proceeding, the Orissa House Rent Control Act, 1967, is undoubtedly a temporary statute with a fixed duration. As noticed earlier, the life of the statute has been extended from time to time since continuance of the beneficent legislation was considered necessary by the legislature. With this end in view the legislature enacted the Orissa House Rent Control (Amendment) Act, 1981 (Orissa Act 15 of 1981) which, as noticed earlier, received the assent or the President on 2nd May, 1981 and was published in the official Gazette on the 4th May, 1981. It is no doubt true that the previous enactments extending the life of the act the expression used was it shall cease to have effect after expiry of five years of eight years or eleven years, under Orissa House Rent Control (Amendment) Act, 1974 (Orissa Act 10 of 1974) a specific date i.e., 4th day of May, 1981 was mentioned. This may prima facie indicate a position that the legislature intended that the statute shall not have effect even on the 4th May, 1981, But the purpose under both the provisions remained the same, i.e., to specify the period during which the Act shall remain in force. When a statutory provision is meant to specify a period it is normally, taken as inclusive of the date mentioned in the provision. As such, in the present case it has to be taken that the Orissa House Rent Control Act. 1957 was in force on 4th May, 1961. Accordingly, the contention of the learned counsel for the petitioners that the Orissa House Rent Control Act, 1967 ceased to have effect on the expiry of midnight of 3rd/4th of May, 1981 has to be rejected as without, substance.