BHEROOMAI Vs. VALI MOHAMMED

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS is a revision petition by the defendant tenants against the order of the additional District Judge No. 1 Jodhpur, dated 5-7-1979, where by the defendants' appeal against the order of the Additional Munsif and Judicial Magistrate, First Class No. 1, Jodhpur, dated 20-1-1979 was dismissed and the order of the Add!. Munsif, striking out the defence of the defendants against eviction, was maintained.

(2.) THE facts leading to the present revision petition may, briefly, be stated as under:

(3.) I have given my careful consideration to the contention of Shri Rewa Chand, but I am unable to agree with the same. It may be stated that under sub-sec. (4) of section 13, as it stood prior to the Rajasthan Ordinance No 26 of 1975, the tenant was under an obligation to deposit the amount of rent on the first date of hearing or such date, which the court may fix on an application made to it in this behalf Maximum time, which can be extended by the Court was only two months. The interpretation, which Shri Rewachand has tried to put on Section 13 (4) (Old), is in no way borne out and the question is no more res integra. In Rampal vs. The Manager, Sasta Sahitya Press Ltd. (1) it is held as under: - "under subsec. (4) of sec. 13, the tenant must deposit all arrears of rent with interest thereon on the first day of hearing or he must make an application to the court on the first day of hearing for fixing time to deposit arresrs of rent. The Court is not bound to fix time on such application. But in case it exercises its discretion in favour of the tenant and fixes time within which the tenant is allowed to deposit the arrears of rent, the time so fixed or subsequently extended by thae Court must not exceed two months from the first day of hearing. If the tenant deposits the arrears of rent as specified in sub-section (4) of Section 13 within the time so fixed by the Court, his defence against eviction is not to be struck out, but if he fails to do so, his defence has to be struck out under section 13 (6 ). There is therefore no substance in the contention that an application to the Court for fixing time to deposit arrears of rent can be made even after the first day of hearing and if the Court fixes a date on such application even after the expiry of two months from the first day of hearing, such an order will be in conformity with the provisions of sub-sec. (4) of Sec. 13 of the Act"