ASHWANI KUMAR Vs. SANDEEP KAUR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Challenge in the present revision petition, filed by the petitioner-tenant is to the orders dated 16.10.2018, passed by the Rent Controller, Amritsar and upheld in appeal filed under Section 52 of the Punjab Rent Act, 1995 (for short, the 'Act') on 04.01.2019, whereby the eviction order passed on the ground of having not filed any affidavit along with the leave to contest application, has been upheld.

(2.) Counsel for the tenant has vehemently submitted that under the Act, the legislature has provided that a Non-Resident Indian has to return to India for permanent residence under Section 24(3) of the Act and then only he is entitled for recovery of immediate possession of a residential or nonresidential premises let out by him on or prior to the commencement of the Act which are required for his or her own use. It is submitted that in the absence of such necessary ingredients having been pleaded in the eviction petition filed, the leave to defend should have been granted and the eviction order was not justified. It is, accordingly, submitted that as per the provisions of Section 13-B of the East Punjab Urban Rent Restriction Act, 1949, the words were 'Returned to India' and therefore, the judgments relied upon by the Rent Controller passed under the earlier Act could not be applicable as the words 'permanent residence' had not been used.

(3.) Counsel for the landlord, on the other hand, has submitted that the necessary ingredients had been pleaded that the landlady was trying to settle permanently in Amritsar and even an affidavit had been filed by the landlady to this extent before the Rent Controller. It was accordingly, argued that no specific ground was taken as per the requirement under Section 38(7)(b) of the Act which provided that an affidavit had to be filed by the tenant stating the grounds on which he seeks to contest the application for eviction. Leave had to be obtained from the Rent Authority and in default in not obtaining the said leave, the statement made by the landlord in the application for eviction was deemed to be admitted by the tenant and the applicant was entitled for an order of eviction on the grounds aforesaid. It was further submitted that as per Sub-clause (c) the affidavit filed by the tenant should disclose such facts as would disentitle the landlord from obtaining an order for the recovery of possession of the premises and the Rent Authority would then only give the tenant leave to contest. Thus, once the affidavit itself had not been filed, the tenant had rightly been ordered to be evicted.