SURJO MOHAN THAKUR Vs. CHHOTE SINGH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The four suits out of which these four Letters Patent Appeals arise wore brought by the plaintiff-landlord against the tenant-defendants for arrears of rent for the years 1337 to 1340 in respect of the plaintiffs twelve annas share. The lower Courts decreed the suit, and the learned Judge of this Court sitting singly has set aside the decrees and awarded a partial decree en the basis of the rent which has hitherto been paid by the tenants.

(2.) The claim of the plaintiff was based upon the contention that, although the rent which had theretofore been paid was the correct rate of rent for ordinary cultivation, yet the tenants had begun to cultivate crops such as sugarcane and vegetables on parts of their land and that by ancient custom of the estate in the case of land which was cultivated by the tenants with crops of that nature the rent stood at the rate of Rs. 5 a bigha which is in excess of the old rate. The defendants contended that the amount by which the rents according to such claim of the landlord were stated as payable was in excess of the actual rent and constituted an abwab. They further took the point that the rent had been the matter of settlement proceedings and the rent had been fixed at the rate that had up to the date of the suits been paid.

(3.) The lower Courts held that in this estate the custom was established by the plaintiff, and directed that in respect of land bearing these particular crops, the rent to be paid should be, as the plaintiff claims, Rs. 5 a bigha instead of the former rent which they held was payable only in respect of crops of other kinds.