Research › Search › Judgment

Telangana High Court · body

2022 DIGILAW 326 (TS)

Kotla Parameshwari v. K. Perumallu

2022-04-28

A.VENKATESHWARA REDDY

body2022
ORDER : 1. This Civil Revision Petition is filed under Article 227 of the Constitution of India by defendants 1 and 2, assailing the order dated 16.06.2021 in I.A. No. 6 of 2021 in O.S. No. 10 of 2021 on the file of the learned IX Additional Senior Civil Judge, Ranga Reddy District at L.B. Nagar. 2. This application in I.A. No. 6 of 2021 was filed by the plaintiffs under Order XV-A read with Section 151 of the Civil Procedure Code (for short ‘CPC’) to direct the defendants to pay the arrears of rent from 01.09.2019 to 30.05.2020 for nine months @ Rs. 1,28,993/- per month excluding electricity and water charges, which comes to Rs. 11,60,937/- plus difference of enhanced amount of Rs. 1,23,977/- total due amount of Rs. 12,84,914/- and after deducting rental deposit amount of Rs. 6 lakhs, the defendants may be directed to pay Rs. 6,84,905/- to the petitioners. 3. This application in I.A. No. 6 of 2021 was allowed by the trial Court. Feeling aggrieved by the said orders, this civil revision petition is filed by the defendants 1 and 2. 4. Heard learned counsel on both sides. Perused the material placed available on record. Detailed submissions made on either side have received due consideration of this Court. 5. For the sake of convenience, the parties are hereinafter referred to as plaintiffs and defendants as arrayed in the original suit. 6. The plaintiffs have filed the original suit in O.S. No. 10 of 2021 on the file of the learned IX Additional Senior Civil Judge, Ranga Reddy at L.B. Nagar for eviction of tenants, arrears of rent and mesne profits. They have also filed the present application under Order-XV-A of CPC seeking a direction to the respondents to pay the arrears of rent excluding water and electricity charges and after deducting rental deposit amount to pay the net amount of Rs. 6,84,905/-. 7. Order XV-A of CPC was inserted by A.P. Amendment only with an object to see that in a suit for recovery of possession on termination of lease or licence, the defendant, who is continuing in possession, while filing his written statement shall deposit the amount of admitted rents, calculating up to the date into the Court and to continue to deposit the said amount, till the judgment is rendered in the suit. 8. 8. The contention of the defendants is that the trial Court has erred in passing the impugned order directing to pay or depositing an amount of Rs. 11,60,937/- after deducting the deposit amount of Rs. 6 lakhs, the trial Court has arrived at a wrong conclusion about the abnormal rent of Rs. 1,28,993/- per month from 01.09.2019 to 30.05.2020, which comes to Rs. 11,60,937/- plus difference of enhanced rent due of Rs. 1,23,977/- total due of Rs. 12,84,914/-. The trial Court failed to appreciate the contentions raised by the revision petitioners. The petition was allowed without any basis. There is no material available on record. 9. I have given my anxious and thoughtful consideration to the order impugned and the pleadings in the plaint and written statement. 10. The jural relationship of landlord and tenant between the plaintiffs and defendants 1 and 2 is not dispute. Even according to the averments of the counter filed by the respondents 1 and 2, they are liable to pay arrears of rent from November 2019 but their claim is that it is only Rs. 40,000/- per month. Thus, even according to the respondents, the arrears of rent due from November 2019 onwards, though they have obtained status quo in O.S. No. 949 of 2019 on the file of the I Junior Civil Judge, Ranga Reddy District at L.B. Nagar against the plaintiff herein, it has no consequence as to the payment of rents. Be it stated that even the admitted rent is also not deposited by the defendants 1 and 2 till date. 11. It is true that during the enquiry, no oral or documentary evidence is adduced by either parties and based on the averments in the affidavit and counter affidavit, the trial Court has passed the order impugned. But undisputedly the defendants are liable to pay the arrears of rent from November 2019 onwards. Therefore, in view of admitted jural relationship of landlord and tenants between the plaintiffs and defendants 1 and 2, considering the scheme of Order XV-A of CPC, the trial Court has issued such direction. 12. The learned counsel for the petitioners strenuously contends that the order impugned is not supported by any material on record and it is liable to be set aside. 13. 12. The learned counsel for the petitioners strenuously contends that the order impugned is not supported by any material on record and it is liable to be set aside. 13. Per contra, the learned counsel for the respondents/plaintiffs-landlords submits that the jural relationship is not in dispute and the defendants have also admitted that they are due to pay the rents from November 2019 onwards and even they have failed to deposit the agreed rents. There is no error or infirmity in the order impugned and relied on the principles laid in the following decisions: (i) M.B. Chander and Others vs. M/s. Balakrishna Rao Charitable Trust, Hyderabad, Rep. by its Managing Trustee, Sri M. Jayanth Tagore, 2016 (6) ALT 1 (ii) Bharath Bhushan Sanghi vs. Manoj Kumar Soni, 2021 (5) ALD 353 (TS) 14.......... (i) In M.B. Chander’s case (supra), a learned single Judge of this Court while dealing with the identical facts held that Order-XV A Rule-2 of CPC empowers the Court to give such directions, otherwise it amounts to encouraging unscrupulous tenants, who intend to avoid payment of rent for the premises in their occupation for decades together, which would result in substantial loss to the landlord during pendency of the eviction suit or proceedings based on account of abortive pleas raised by the unscrupulous tenants. (ii) In Bharath Bhushan Sanghi’s case (supra), while considering the scheme of Order-XV A of CPC, a learned single Judge of this Court directed the respondent to clear arrears of rent within period of one month and to continue to deposit rents. 15. Reverting back to the facts of the present case as stated above, the defendants have not denied their jural relationship with plaintiffs as landlords and tenants. Admittedly, they are liable to pay rents from November 2019 onwards. The plaintiffs have claimed enhanced rents and mesne profits. In view of the conduct of the defendants in not making any effort even to deposit the admitted rents, I am inclined to accept the plea of plaintiffs that the admitted and enhanced rents are correctly assessed by the trial Court and further that the defendants 1 and 2 committed default in making such payments/deposits of agreed rents. 16. Be it stated that the defendants have also not produced any piece of paper or rental receipts to show that admitted rent is only Rs. 40,000/- per month. 16. Be it stated that the defendants have also not produced any piece of paper or rental receipts to show that admitted rent is only Rs. 40,000/- per month. Therefore, necessary inference that would be drawn is that the admitted rent and deposit is only as mentioned by the plaintiffs and accordingly the trial Court concluded and directed the defendants to pay the admitted rents @ Rs. 40,000/- per month with enhanced rent without prejudice to the rights of the defendants and also to deposit the arrears excluding water and electricity charges and by deducting deposit amount of Rs.6 lakhs within one month from the date of the order. Therefore, the order impugned is sustained and it does not warrant any interference by this Court. 17. In the result, the Civil Revision Petition is dismissed confirming the order impugned dated 16.06.2021 in I.A. No. 6 of 2021 in O.S. No. 10 of 2021 on the file of the IX Additional Senior Civil Judge, Ranga Reddy District at L.B. Nagar. However, in the circumstances of the case, there shall be no order as to costs. 18. As a sequel, interlocutory applications, if any pending in this revision petition, shall stand closed.