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Yusufbhai Noormohammed Jodhpurwala v. Mohammed Sabir Ibrahim Byavarwala

Special Leave Petition (Civil) · Neutral citation not assigned (Special Leave Petition (Civil) No. 735 of 2014)Decided 7 Nov 2014
Special Leave Petition (Civil) No. 735 of 2014
Justice Dipak Misra · Justice Rohinton Fali Nariman · Justice Uday Umesh Lalit

Background

A landlord sought eviction of a tenant whose standard rent was Rs. 70 per month, alleging rent arrears among other grounds. The appellate Small Causes Court ordered eviction because the tenant had not deposited all the rent due by the first hearing. The Gujarat High Court reversed that order, treating the small shortfall and the tenant's willingness to pay as sufficient protection under the Bombay Rent Act.

Decision Breakdown

The Supreme Court set aside the High Court's judgment and restored the appellate eviction order. It held that section 12(3)(b), as applicable to this dispute, required strict compliance with the prescribed payment conditions. A court could not replace full payment with its own assessment that the tenant was generally willing to pay or had substantially complied. The tenant remained in arrears on the relevant occasions, so the statutory protection against eviction was unavailable.

Lesson Learnt

Under the rent provision considered in this case, willingness to pay did not excuse an incomplete deposit by the required hearing date. A tenant relying on that protection needed to check the full amount and payment deadline carefully, even when the shortfall seemed small.

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

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