MAJOR (RETD.) ABDUL H AYEE vs LT. COL. (RETD.) Raja GHULAM MURTAZA AND Other
This matter arises from a petition for special leave to appeal filed by a tenant challenging concurrent findings of eviction passed against him on the ground of default in the payment of rent. The Rent Controller ordered eviction, which was upheld in appeal by the District Judge and subsequently affirmed by the High Court through the dismissal of a constitutional petition. The core legal question concerns whether concurrent factual findings regarding the non-payment of rent by a tenant can be interfered with by the Supreme Court in a petition for special leave. The Supreme Court held that the question of payment of rent is essentially one of fact and cannot be interfered with unless the judgments below suffer from a legal or factual infirmity. The petition was dismissed in limine, while granting the petitioner a three-month grace period to vacate the premises upon certain undertakings. The key principle laid down is that pure questions of fact concurrently determined by lower forums regarding tenancy default will not be disturbed by the apex court in the absence of legal or factual infirmity.
- Whether concurrent factual findings regarding default in the payment of rent can be interfered with by the Supreme Court?
- Can a plea of payment of rent in cash without receipts be accepted when rejected by the lower courts based on cogent evidence?
ORDER
KARAM ELAHEE CHAUHAN, J.-The petitioner who is a tenant in the property in dispute which is described more fully in the petition was ordered to be evicted, there from by the learned Rent Controller on the ground of default in the payment of rent vide his order dated 14-11-1979. He filed an appeal-which was dismissed by the learned District Judge on 7-5-1980. At that stage he filed a constitutional petition being W. P. 6998/80, but without any success as it was also dismissed on 6- 12-1980. He has now come up in a petition for special leave to appeal to this Court,
2. Learned counsel submitted that actually there is no default on the part of his client and even otherwise according to the practice prevalent between the parties he had been paying rent in cash without receipts. All these aspects have been considered by the Courts below and the point of payment of rent being essentially one of fact cannot be interfered with as the judgments and orders of the Courts below have not been shown to us to suffer from any legal or factual infirmity and are fully supported by relevant cogent evidence, and the facts and the circumstances of the case) referred to therein.
3. The result is that this petition is dismissed hereby in limine. Learned counsel requested for some grace period to vacate the property. In the interest of justice we grant him three months time. He undertakes to keep on paying the rent regularly. He further undertakes that he shall vacate the property voluntarily and without causing any damage thereto. Orders accordingly.