MEHMA SINGH Vs. RAKESH KUMAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) No one appears on behalf of the petitioner. Earlier also on May 29, 2006, the petitioner remained unrepresented. This revision petition has been filed by the landlord whose ejectment petition under Section 13 of the East Punjab Urban Rent Restriction Act has been dismissed by the Rent Controller, Kharar as well as by the First Appellate Authority, Rupnagar.

(2.) As can be seen from the impugned orders, the respondent was inducted as a tenant in the shop in question on 22.4.1997 on a monthly rent of Rs. 1000/-. His ejectment was sought by the petitioner on the ground that the respondent had allegedly demolished the front room of the shop without oral or written consent of the petitioner and, thus, by reducing the size of the shop by 7 feet in length, he has impaired its value and utility.

(3.) Upon notice, the respondent put in appearance before the Rent Controller and filed his written statement. While he admitted that the shop at the time when it was rented out to him was measuring 8 feet X 19 feet, he took up the plea that in compliance to the directions issued by the Punjab & Haryana High Court, the encroachments existing on the roads were being removed and the shop in question being located on Ropar-Chandigarh Highway, a part of it was found to have been constructed over the Government land and declaring the same to be an encroachment upon the public road, the authorities of the PWD Department carried out the demolition thereby reducing the size of the shop.