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Tapas Kumar Samanta v. Sarbani Sen

Civil Appeal · Neutral citation not assigned (Civil Appeal Nos. 1831-1832 of 2015)Decided 12 Feb 2015
Civil Appeal Nos. 1831-1832 of 2015
Justice Sudhansu Jyoti Mukhopadhaya · Justice N.V. Ramana

Background

Tapas Kumar Samanta, as landlord, had sued for eviction of a tenant, citing non-payment of rent and his own genuine need to demolish and rebuild the premises for personal use. The trial court and the first appellate court both ruled in the landlord's favour based on the evidence, but the Calcutta High Court, hearing a second appeal, set aside those concurrent findings and sent the matter back for a fresh decision. The landlord appealed to the Supreme Court, arguing the High Court had overstepped its limited power to interfere with findings of fact in a second appeal.

Decision Breakdown

The Supreme Court held that the landlord-tenant relationship, the genuine personal need to rebuild, and the tenant's non-payment of rent had all been properly established on the evidence before the first Appellate Court, and that these were essentially findings of fact. Under Section 100 of the Code of Civil Procedure, a High Court hearing a second appeal cannot re-open and overturn findings of fact that are supported by evidence merely because it might have assessed the evidence differently. Because the appellate court's findings were evidence-based and the dispute about the parties' relationship was the only real factual contest raised, the Court held the High Court had erred in interfering. It set aside the High Court's judgment and restored the Appellate Court's decree, allowing the appeals with no costs.

Lesson Learnt

A second appeal to a High Court is not a second chance to re-argue facts: if the lower courts' findings are backed by evidence, a second appeal under Section 100 CPC can only be entertained on a genuine point of law, not to re-weigh the facts.

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

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