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Abid-Ul-Islam vs. Inder Sain Dua

Civil Appeal · 2022 INSC 402Decided 7 Apr 2022
Civil Appeal No. 9444 of 2016
Sanjay Kishan Kaul · M.M. Sundresh

Background

The appellant's family had leased out two shops to the respondent-tenant back in 1970, and after inheriting ownership, the appellant filed an eviction petition in 2014 under Section 14(1)(e) of the Delhi Rent Control Act, claiming the shops were bona fide required for his own use. The tenant sought leave to defend, arguing the landlord had no title, that the property was actually "enemy property" belonging to the Government of India, and that the landlord had alternative premises available. The Rent Controller rejected the tenant's defence as vague and ordered eviction, but the Delhi High Court, exercising its limited revisional powers under Section 25B(8), reversed this and allowed the tenant to contest the case.

Decision Breakdown

The Supreme Court held that the High Court had exceeded its narrow revisional jurisdiction under the proviso to Section 25B(8) of the Delhi Rent Control Act, which only allows it to check whether the Rent Controller's order was "according to law", not to reassess evidence and function like an appellate court. The Court reiterated settled law that a tenant seeking leave to defend must show a genuine "triable issue" with real supporting material, not vague or unsubstantiated assertions, and that it is not the tenant's place to dictate which alternative property the landlord should use instead. Finding that the Rent Controller had already properly examined and rejected the tenant's defence as a "moonshine" (sham) explanation, the Supreme Court held the High Court wrongly disturbed that finding. The eviction order of the Rent Controller was restored and the High Court's order set aside.

Lesson Learnt

A High Court's revisional power under special rent-eviction procedures is deliberately narrow. It can only check whether the lower authority's order followed the law, not re-weigh the evidence like a full appeal; and a tenant resisting eviction must back up their defence with concrete facts, not vague claims about alternative premises or unrelated title disputes.

Official source (sci.gov.in)View Judgment (PDF)

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