SANTOKH SINGH Vs. LACHHMAN DASS

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE petitioner's eviction has consistently been ordered by the two subordinate authorities under Section 13 of the Haryana Urban (Control of Rent & Eviction) Act, 1973 on the grounds that : (i) the tenant has ceased to occupy the building for a continuous period of four months without reasonable cause; and (ii) the tenant already has in his possession a residential building reasonably sufficient for his requirement in the urban area concerned.

(2.) SO far as the ground (i) is concerned, I am of the opinion that the same stands nullified by the respondent's plea noted in his eviction application itself wherein he says that the respondent has started tethering cattle in the house in dispute and has also put dung cakes on the walls of the same and thereby has diminished its value and utility. This plea of the landlord on the face to its runs counter to the one referred to above that the petitioner has failed to occupy the disputed or demised house for a period of more than one year without any reasonable cause. It is thus patent in the light of the above noted plea that the petitioner never ceased to occupy the demised premises; may be that he started using the same for a purpose different than the one he was initially using it for.