HARDIP SINGH Vs. KEWAL KRISHAN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE respondent Dr. Kewal Krishan was tenant of one of the petitioners; namely, Kehar Singh. The latter transferred ownership of the tenancy premises in favour of the petitioners Hardip Singh. Pritam Singh, and Upinder SIngh. Before this transfer Kehar Singh had received an excess amount of Rs. 471.50 towards rent. After the transfer Hardip Singh, Pritam Singh and Upinder Singh petitioners, as the new landlords, filed ejectment petition against the tenant and demanded Rs. 540/- as house-tax paid by them in addition to the arrears of rent. The tenant tendered this amount of house-tax along with the arrears of rent on the first date of hearing before the Rent Controller.

(2.) SUBSEQUENTLY , the tenant - Dr. Kewal Krishan filed a suit against the petitioners to recover the excess amount of rent paid by him as well as Rs. 540/- tendered by him as house-tax in the eviction proceedings. The suit was tried by the Small Causes Court, Ludhiana. The learned trial Court granted a decree of Rs. 471.50 against Kehar Singh petitioner for having received excess rent. The suit in respect of the amount of house-tax of Rs. 540/- tendered by the tenant to the new landlords was dismissed on the ground that the new landlords were entitled to recover the house-tax from the tenant.

(3.) THE sole point for consideration in this case is whether the petitioners were entitled to recover Rs. 540/-, statedly the amount of house-tax paid by them, from the tenant in the eviction proceedings. The petitioner had claimed this amount in those proceedings as part of rent in view of Section 9 of the East Punjab Rent Restriction Act (hereinafter referred to as 'the Act'). This section reads as under:-