Delhi Rent Control Act, 1958
14. Protection of tenant against eviction. –
(1) Notwithstanding anything to the contrary
contained in any other law or contract, no order or decree for the recovery of possession
of any premises shall be made by and court or Controller in favor of the
landlord against a tenat:
Provided that the Controller may, on an
application made to him in the prescribed manner, make an order for the
recovery of possession of the premises on one or more of the following grounds
only, namely:-
(a) That the tenant
has neither paid nor tendered the whole of the arrears of the rent legally
recoverable from him within two months of the date on which a landlord in the
manner provided in section 106 of the Transfers of Property Act, 1882 (4 of
1882);
(b) That the tenant
has, on or after the 9th day of June, 1952, sublet, assigned or otherwise
without obtaining the consent in writing of the landlord;
(c) That the tenant
has used the premises for purpose other than that for which they were let-
(i)
If the premises have been let on or after the 9th day of June, 1952, without
obtaining the consent in writing of the landlord; or
(ii) If the premises
have been let before the said date without obtaining his consent;
(d) That the premises
were let for use as a residence and neither the tenant nor any member of his
family has been residing therein for a period of six months immediately before
the date of the filing of the application for the recovery of possession
thereof;
(e) That the premises
let for residential purpose are required bona fide by the landlord for
occupation as a residence for himself or for any member of his family dependent
on him, if he is the owner thereof, or for any person for whose benefit the
premises are held and the landlord or such person has no other reasonably
suitable residential accommodation;
Explanation.- For the purpose of
this clause, "premises let for residential purpose" include any
premises which having been let for use as a residence are, without the consent
of the landlord, used incidentally for commercial or other purposes;
(f) That the premises
have become unsafe or unfit for human habitation and are required bona fide by
the landlord for carrying out repairs which cannot be carried out without the
premises being vacated
(g) That the premises
are required bona fide by the landlord for the purpose building or re-building
or making thereto any substantial additions or alterations and that such
building or re-building or addition or alteration cannot be carried out without
the premises being vacated;
(h) That the tenant
has, whether before or after the commencement of this Act, (Note: The word
"built" omitted by Act 57 of 1988, sec.8 (w.e.f.
1-12-1988)) acquired vacant possession of, or been allotted, a residence;
[(hh)
(Note: Ins. by Act 57 of 1988, sec.8 (w.e.f.
1-12-1988)) That the tenant has, after the commencement of the Delhi Rent Control
(Amendment) Act, 1988, built a residence and ten years have elapsed
there-after;]
(i)
That the premises were let to the tenant for use as a residence by reason of
his being in the service or employment of the landlord, and that the tenant has
ceased, whether before or after the commencement of this Act, to be in such
service or employment;
(j) That the tenant
has, whether before or after the commencement of this Act, caused or permitted
to be caused substantial damage to the premises;
(k) That the tenant
has, notwithstanding previous notice, used or dealt with the premises in a
manner contrary to any condition imposed on the landlord by the Government or
the Delhi Development Authority or the Municipal Corporation of Delhi while
giving him a lease of the land on which the premises are situate;
(i)
That the landlord requires the premises in order to carry out any building work
at the instance of the Government or the Delhi Development Authority or the
Municipal Corporation of
(2) No order for the
recovery of possession of any premises shall be made on the ground specified in
clause (a) of the proviso to sub-section (1) if the tenant makes payment or
deposit as required by section 15:
Provided that no tenant shall
be entitled to the benefit under this sub-section, if, having obtained such
benefit once in respect of any premises, he again makes a default in the
payment of rent of those premises for three consecutive months.
(3) No order for the
recovery of possession in any proceeding under sub-section (1) shall be binding
on any sub-tenant referred to in section 17 who has given notice of his sub-tenancy
to the landlord under the provisions of that section, unless the sub-tenant is
made a party to the proceeding and the order for eviction is made binding on
him.
(4) For the purpose of
clause (b) of the proviso to sub-section (1), any premises which have been let
for being used for the purpose of business or profession shall be deemed to
have been sub-let by the tenant, if the Controller is satisfied that the tenant
without obtaining the consent in writing of the landlord has, after the 16th
day of August, 1958, allowed any person is a partner of the tenant in the
business or profession but really for the purpose of sub-letting such premises
to the person.
(5) No application for
the recovery of possession of any premises shall lie under sub-section (1) on
the ground specified in clause (c ) of the proviso thereto, unless the landlord
has given to the tenant a notice in the prescribed manner requiring him to stop
the misuse of the premises and the tenant has refused or failed to comply with
such requirement within one month of the date of service of the notice; and no
order for eviction against the tenant shall be made in such a case, unless the
Controller is satisfied that the misuse of the premises is of such a nature
that it is a public nuisance or that it causes damage to the premises or is
otherwise detrimental to the interest of the landlord.
(6) Where a landlord
has acquired any premises by transfer, no application for the recovery of
possession of such premises shall lie under sub-section (1), on the ground
specified in clause (e) of the proviso thereto, unless a period of five years
have elapsed from the date of the acquisition.
(7) Where an order for
the recovery of possession of any premises is made on the ground specified in
clause(c) of the proviso to sub-section (1), the landlord shall not be entitled
to obtain possession thereof before the expiration of a period of six months
from the date of the order.
(8) No order for the
recovery or possession of any premises shall be made on the ground specified in
clause (g) of the proviso to sub-section (1), unless the Controller is
satisfied that the proposed reconstruction will not radically after the purpose
for which the premises were let or such ramidically
alteration is in the public interest, and that the plans and estimates of such
reconstruction have been properly prepared and that necessary fund for the
purpose are available with the landlord.
(9) No order for the recovery
of possession of any premises shall be made on the ground specified in clause
(I) of the proviso to sub-section (1), if the Controller is of opinion that
there is any bona fide dispute as to whether the tenant has ceased to be in the
service or employment of the landlord.
(10) No order for the
recovery of possession of any premises shall be made on the ground specified in
clause, (i) of the proviso to sub-second (1) if the
tenant, within such time as may be specified in this behalf by the Controller,
carries out repairs to the damage caused to the satisfaction of the Controller
or pays to the landlord such amount by way of compensation as the Controller may
direct
(11) No order for the recovery of possession of any premises shall be made on the ground specified in clause (k) of the proviso of sub-section (1), if the tenant, within such time as may be specified in this behalf by the Controller, complies with the condition imposed on the landlord by any of the authorities referred to in that clause or pays to that authority such amount by way of compensation as the Controller may direct.
