Allahabad High Court
Manoj Kumar Jain vs Kumari Jamal Ara Begum And Anr. on 1 April, 2019
Bench: Manoj Kumar Gupta
HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT ALLAHABAD
?Court No. - 19
Case :- S.C.C. REVISION No. - 409 of 2015
Revisionist :- Manoj Kumar Jain
Opposite Party :- Kumari Jamal Ara Begum And Anr.
Counsel for Revisionist :- Smt. Krishna Singh,Vijendra Pal Singh
Counsel for Opposite Party :- Swapnil Kumar
Hon'ble Manoj Kumar Gupta,J.
The instant revision is directed against the order dated 26.5.2015 rejecting the application 33-C filed by the revisionist seeking impleadment in SCC Suit No.4 of 2013. The suit has been filed by the plaintiff- opposite party against the defendant-respondent, alleging him to be tenant on his behalf, for the relief of recovery of arrears of rent and eviction. It is asserted in paragraph 5 of the plaint that the respondent-tenant had sublet the shop to his brother Manoj Kumar Jain, the revisionist herein.
The defendant-tenant filed written statement and claimed that he had vacated the shop on 31.12.2005 and thereafter, it was let out to his brother Manoj Kumar Jain and since then, he had been paying rent to the plaintiff and there exists relationship of landlord and tenant between the plaintiff and Manoj Kumar Jain. He is a necessary party to the suit. The suit has been wrongly filed against him.
During pendency of the suit, Manoj Kumar Jain, revisionist filed application seeking his impleadment as defendant. The application has been rejected by the impugned order holding that subtenant is not a necessary party and thus could not be impleaded.
Counsel for the revisionist submitted that the revisionist never admitted himself to be sub-tenant. His specific case is that he is tenant-in-chief. Even the original tenant i.e., defendant-respondent, in his written statement took a specific plea that the shop is in tenancy of the revisionist and there exists relationship of landlord and tenant between the revisionist and the plaintiff. In his submission, the court below has wrongly proceeded to reject the impleadment application by assuming the revisionist as a sub-tenant.
On the other hand, learned counsel for the plaintiff-opposite party submitted that the revisionist is sub-tenant and specific assertion has been made in this regard in paragraph 5 of the plaint and thus as per various decisions mentioned in the judgement of the trial court, a sub-tenant is not a necessary party in a suit for eviction of the main tenant.
As per pleadings of the parties, it is not in dispute that the revisionist is in possession of the disputed premises. In the suit, one of the issue for consideration before the trial court would be whether Manoj Kumar Jain, the revisionist is occupying the disputed shop as tenant in his own right or as sub-tenant of his brother.
Concededly, the defendant-respondent had already vacated the shop and is therefore, hardly left with any interest to contest the suit. The issue as to whether the possession of the revisionist over the disputed premises is as sub-tenant or tenant, could not be effectually and conclusively determined in the absence of the revisionist. The revisionist is thus at least a proper party to the proceedings. Once he has come forward to seek his impleadment, there is no reason to reject the application by assuming him to be a sub-tenant. As observed above, the issue as to whether he is occupying the disputed shop in his own right as tenant in chief or as a sub-tenant could only be decided only after evidence is led and for such purpose the revisionist would be the best person to prove the case set up by him in his regard.
Consequently, this Court is of the opinion that the trial court has acted with material irregularity in exercise of its jurisdiction in rejecting the impleadment application. The impugned order dated 26.5.2015 is set aside. The revision is allowed.
The trial court shall permit impleadment of the revisionist as defendant no.2 in the suit and shall thereafter proceed with the same expeditiously in accordance with law.
(Manoj Kumar Gupta, J.)
Order Date :- 1.4.2019
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