New Delhi: The Supreme Court has ruled
that courts have the power to impose a higher rents as an
interim measure on tenants facing eviction from their
landlords.
Such an interim cost could be imposed as a
pre-condition for staying the eviction order passed by the
rent controller and the same would be subject to the final
appeal in the case, a three-judge bench of Justices B N
Aggrawal, G S Singhvi and Aftab Alam said.
The apex court passed the ruling while dismissing the
appeal filed by Maharashtra government challenging a direction
of the Bombay High Court directing it to deposit an amount of
Rs 5.40 lakh as deposit for staying an eviction order passed
by the Rent Controller Court.
The state government, which was a tenant with a
landlord, contended such a condition cannot be imposed as the
monthly rent for the premises rented by it itself was around
only Rs 5,327.
Rejecting the argument, the apex court said "we hold
that in an appeal or revision preferred by a tenant against an
order or decree of an eviction passed under the Rent Act, it
is open to the appellate or the revisional court to stay the
execution of the order or the decree on terms, including a
direction to pay monthly rent at a rate higher than the
contractual rent.
"Needless to say that in fixing the amount subject to
payment of which the execution of the order/ decree is stayed,
the court would exercise restraint and would not fix any
excessive, fanciful or punitive amount," the apex court said
in its judgement.
Buereau Report
