M/S BAND BOX PRIVATE LIMITEDversusESTATE OFFICER, PUNJAB & SIND BANK AND ANR.

                         [2014] 4 S.C.R. 42


A               M/S BAND BOX PRIVATE LIMITED
                                  v.
     ESTATE OFFICER, PUNJAB & SINO BANK AND ANR.
              (Civil Appeal No. 2878 of 2014)
                        FEBRUARY 25, 2014
B
          [H.L. GOKHALE AND KURIAN JOSEPH, JJ]

       PUBLIC PREMISES (EVICTION OF UNAUTHORISED
    OCCUPANTS) ACT, 1971:
c
          Eviction of unauthorized occupants - Appellant in
    occupation of property in question since 26. 3. 1952 -
    Respondent-Bank becoming owner of it on 13.12.1978 -
    Notice uls 106 of TP Act by Bank followed by proceedings to
0   evict the appellant - Plea of appellant that it was protected
    under Delhi Rent Control Act - Order of eviction by Estate
    Officer of Bank - Confirmed by District Judge as well as single
    Judge and Division Bench of High Court - Held: Orders
    passed by Division Bench as well as by single Judge of High
    Court, District Judge, and Estate Officer are set aside --
E
    Eviction proceedings initiated against appellant will stand set
    aside - However, appellant shall continue to pay Rs.1,80,0001
    - per month as rent as per order dated 6.8.2012, in place of
    the recorded rent of Rs. 183 per month, for a period of 12
    years with an annual increase of 10% as directed in the order
F   - It is made clear that after 12 years, it will be open to
    respondents to take steps under Public Premises Act, if
    required - Transfer of Property Act, 1882 - s.106.

         Ashoka Marketing Limited and another vs. Punjab
G   National Bank and others 1990 (3) SCR 649 =(1990) 4 SCC
    406; Dr. Suhas H. Pophale vs. Oriental Insurance Co. Limited
    2014 (2) SCALE 223; Mis Jain Ink Manufacturing Company
                                  =
    vs. L.l.C. 1981 (1) SCR 498 (1980) 4 SCC 435, Kaiser-1-
    Hind Pvt. Limited andanother vs. National textile Corporation
H                                42
    M/S BAND BOX PRIVATE LIMITED v. ESTATE                  43
    OFFICER, PUNJAB & SINO BANK AND ANR.

(Maharashtra North) Limited and others 2002 (2) Suppl. SCR . A
555 = (2002) 8 sec 182 - referred to.
                     Case Law Reference:
    1990 (3) SCR 649              referred to      para 5
                                                                 B
    2014 (2) SCALE 223            referred to      para 6
    1981 (1) SCR 498               referred to     para 8
    2002 (2) Suppl. SCR 555        referred to     para 9
    CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION : Civil Appeal No.              C
2878 of 2014.

    From the Judgment and Order dated 13.07.2012 of the
High Court of Delhi at New Delhi in LPA No. 250 of 2012.
                                                                 D
      Harin P. Raval, Nikhil Goel, Marsook Bafaki, Naveen Goel
for the Appellant.

    Vikas Singh, Suruchii Aggarwal, Deepeika Kalia, Kapish
Seth for the Respondents.
                                                                 E
    The following Order of the Court was delivered by

                           ORDER

    1. Leave granted.
                                                                 F
    2. We have heard Mr. Harin P. Raval, learned senior
counsel in support of this appeal and Mr. Vikas Singh, learned
senior counsel appearing for the respondents.

     3. This appeal seeks to challenge the judgment and order G
dated 13.07.2012 passed by a Division Bench of the Delhi High
Court in LP.A. No.250/2012, whereby the Division Bench
confirmed the order passed by the learned Single Judge as well
as the orders passed by the District Judge and the Estate
Officer. The appellant has been directed to be evicted under H
    44       SUPREME COURT REPORTS                 [2014] 4 S.C.R.


A   these orders from the concerned premises situated at 18/90,
    Con naught Circus.New Delhi-110001.

         4. The case of the appellant is that the appellant has been
    occupying these premises right from 26th March, 1952 and the
    respondent-Bank became owner of this property only on
8
    31.12.1978. There were some initial notices issued to the
    appellant to vacate the premises, but ultimately it is the notice
    dated 15.11.1999 with which we are concerned in the present
    matter. It was the notice issued by invoking the provisions of
C   Section 106 of the Transfer of Property Act. This was followed
    by the proceeding to evict the appellant which has led to the
    eviction order passed by the Estate Officer, and which has been
    confirmed, as stated above, all throughout.

          5. Mr. Raval submits that the appellant had raised the point
D   of not being covered under the Public Premises Act, 1971 at
    all stages. He has drawn our attention to the order passed by
    the Estate Officer, wherein it has been recorded that the
    appellant canvassed that the appellant's tenancy continued
    un~er the protection of Delhi Rent Control Act, and the
E   respondents were not capable of terminating the tenancy by
    mere service of the notice. That submission was specifically
    rejected by the Estate Officer by relying upon the judgment of
    this Court in Ashoka Marketing Limited and another vs. Punjab
    National Bank and others reported in (1990) 4 SCC 406.
F        6. Mr. Raval submits that the said plea was reiterated
    before the District Judge, and it is reflected in paragraph 5 of
    the order of the District Judge. Thereafter, this plea has been
    raised before the learned Single Judge, and also in the Special
    leave petition before this Court. Mr. Raval has drawn the
G   attention of this Court to the judgment in the case of Dr. Suhas
    H. Pophale vs. Oriental Insurance Co. Limited reported in
    2014 (2) SCALE 223. In this judgment, to which one of us (H.L.
    Gokhale, J.) was a party, this Court has held that the Public
    Premises Act cannot be applied to the premises where the
H   occupants have come in possession thereof, prior to the
    M/S BAND BOX PRIVATE LIMITED v. ESTATE                    45
    OFFICER, PUNJAB & SINO BANK AND ANR.
application of the Act, i.e., prior to 16th September, 1958. In     A
the circumstances, Mr. Raval submits that all these orders
should be set aside, the appeal should be allowed and the
eviction proceedings should be dismissed.

      7. On the other hand, it was submitted by Mr. Vikas Singh,    B
learned senior counsel appearing for the respondent-Bank that
the appellant had raised at an intermediate stage the plea of
not being covered under the Public Premises Act, and had
subsequently dropped that plea. They had then relied upon
guidelines and, therefore, the plea, which is sought to be raised   C
at a second stage, cannot be allowed to be raised now on the
ground of res judicata, as well as constructive res judicata. As
far as this objection of Mr. Vikas Singh is concerned, inasmuch
as the plea raised by Mr. Raval is based on a legal submission,
we would not like the appellant to be denied the opportunity of
raising the legal plea and, therefore, we do not accept this        0
submission.

     8. There are two other submissions raised by Mr. Vikas
Singh. Firstly, he drew our attention to the fact that in Ashoka
Marketing Limited (supra), there were two properties involved,      E
namely, one that was of Ashoka Marketing Limited and the
second was of M/s Sahu Jain Services Limited. Both the
parties were occupying the premises concerned since
1.7.1958, i.e., prior to the date when the Public Premises Act
became applicable, and in spite of that their submissions have      F
been rejected by the Constitution Bench. This being the
position, in his submission, the view taken by a Bench of two
Judges in the case of Dr. Suhas H Popha/e(supra) is
erroneous. We have noted this submission of Mr. Vikas Singh.
In paragraph 47 of the judgment in the case of Dr. Suhas H.         G
Pophale, this Court has referred to the judgment in the case of
M/s Jain Ink Manufacturing Company vs. L.l.C. reported in
(1980) 4 sec 435, and has observed that the issue of
protection under a welfare legislation being available to the
tenant prior to the premises becoming public premises, and the      H
    46        SUPREME COURT REPORTS               [2014] 4 S.C.R.


A   issue of retrospectivity, was not under consideration before the
    Court in Mis Jain Ink Manufacturing Company (supra). The
    same holds good for the judgment rendered in Ashoka
    Marketing Limited (supra), and that being so, since those
    aspects were not gone into in the judgment of Ashoka
B   Marketing Limited (supra), this Court has examined them in the
    case of Dr Suhas H. Pophale (supra). This Court has
    specifically observed in paragraph 50 thereof that for a moment
    this Court was not taking any different position from the
    propositions in Ashoka Marketing Limited (supra). In fact, what
c   was done was to clarify that the Public Premises Act will apply
    only in certain circumstances. That being so, t.his submission
    of Mr. Vikas Singh cannot be accepted.

        9. He then referred us to a judgment of another
    Constitution Bench in the case of Kaiser-I-Hind Pvt. Limited
D   and another vs. National textile Corporation (Maharashtra
    North) Limited and others (2002) 8 SCC 182, and particularly
    paragraphs 40, 42 and 65 thereof. Paragraph 40 of this
    judgment reads as follows:

E        "40. Once the PP Eviction Act is enacted, then the
         Bombay Rent Act would not prevail qua the repugnancy
         between it and the PP Eviction Act. To the extent of
         repugnancy, the State law would be void under Article
         254(1) and the law made by Parliament would prevail.
F        Admittedly, the duration of the Bombay Rent Act was
         extended up to 31.3.1973 by Maharashtra Act 12of1970.
         The result would be from the date of the coming into force
         of the PP Eviction Act, the Bombay Rent Act qua the
         properties of the Government and government companies
         would be inoperative. For this purpose, language of Article
G
         254(1) is unambiguous and specifically provides that if any
         provision of law made by the legislature of the State is
         repugnant to the provision of law made by Parliament. then
         the law made by Parliament whether passed before or
         after the law made by the legislature of the State, would
H
    M/S BAND BOX PRIVATE LIMITED v. ESTATE                    47
    OFFICER, PUNJAB & SINO BANK AND ANR.
     prevail. It also makes it clear !hat the law made by the A
     legislature of the State, to the extent of repugnancy, would
     be void."

     10. As seen from paragraph 40, quoted above, the
judgment clearly says that the Bombay Rent Act would not
                                                                     8
prevail qua the repugnancy between it and the Public Premises
Eviction Act. That aspect has not been contradicted in Dr. Suhas
H. Pophale's case (supra). It also relies upon the judgment in
Ashoka Marketing Limited (supra) which says that the Public
Premises Act as well as the State Rent Control Laws are both
referable to entries in concurrent list and they operate in their    C
own field. It is only in the area of its own that the State Rent
Control Act applies and in its own time frame. The judgment in
Dr. Suhas Popha/e's case accepts that the Public Premises
Act will prevail over the Bombay Rent Act to the extent of
repugnancy i.e. for eviction of unauthorised tenants and for         D
collection of arrear of rent, but, not prior to 16.9.1958 when the
Public Premises Act became applicable. Paragraphs 42 and
65 which are relied upon also do not deal with the aspect of
retrospectivity and being protected under the welfare legislation.
That being so, it is not possible to accept this submission of       E-
Mr. Vikas Singh.

      11. For the reasons stated above, we allow this appeal
and set aside the order passed by the Division Bench as well
as by the Single Judge, by the District Judge, and the Estate        F
Officer. The eviction proceedings initiated against the appellant
will stand set aside.

     12. Although, this appeal has been allowed in favour of the
appellant, Mr. Vikas Singh has pointed out that when this
appeal came up for consideration at an earlier stage, this Court G
had passed an order on 6.8.2012, that the appellant shall pay
a sum of Rs.1,80,000/- per month as rent. Mr. Raval has taken
instructions, and has very fairly stated that the appellant is
aggreable to continue to pay this amount, though otherwise the
recorded rent is only Rs.183/- per month. The appellant has H
    48       SUPREME COURT REPORTS                  [2014] 4 S.C.R.


A   been paying this amount, as per the order passed by this Court
    on 6.8.2012 and shall continue to pay that amount, hereinafter
    by way of rent. Mr. Raval has however sought that the appellant
    shall pay this rent regularly, but it should get some protection,
    inasmuch as he is agreeing to pay this substantial higher
B   amount. Mr. Vikas Singh has taken instructions and he states
    that the appellant will be allowed to continue in the premises,
    at least, for a period of 12 (twelve) years, provided the appellant
    pays the monthly rent regularly, with a rider that at the end of
    every financial year, the respondent-Bank will have the right to
c   revjse the rent by an increase of ten per cent. Mr. Raval agrees
    to the suggestion of Mr. Vikas Singh. Therefore, the next
    revision of rent will be from 1.4.2015. We record this
    understanding between the parties and though this appeal is
    allowed, the appellant will pay the rent of Rs.1,80,000/- per
    month till the end of 31.3.2015, whereafter the Bank will be
D
    entitled to revise the rent by ten per cent every year. In the event
    of any default in paying the monthly rent, the respondent-Bank
    will be entitled to take the appropriate proceedings. The 12
    years period will be counted from 1.4.2013. We make it further
    clear that after the expiry of twelve years, it will be open to the
E   respondents to take steps under the Public Premises Act,
    1971, if required.

    R.P.                                             Appeal allowed.