Bombay High Court
Municipal Corporation Of Greater ... vs Mr. Laxman Keshav Kudalkar on 24 April, 2015
Author: M. S. Sonak
Bench: M. S. Sonak
dss judgment cra-215-09 @ cac-662-13
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY
CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION
CIVIL REVISION APPLICATION NO. 215 OF 2009
Laxman Keshav Kudalkar .. Applicants
(Since deceased through his Lrs.)
vs.
Municipal Corporation of
Greater Mumbai and anr. .. Respondents
WITH
CIVIL APPLICATION NO. 662 OF 2013
Municipal Corporation of
Greater Mumbai .. Applicant
Vs.
Laxman Keshav Kudalkar .. Respondents
(Since deceased through his Lrs.)
Ms Pallavi Dabholkar for the Applicants in CRA 215/09 and for
Respondents in CA 662/13.
Mr. Ram S. Apte, Sr. Advocate i/b Mr. A.K. Nandanwar for the
Respondents in CRA 215/09 and for the Applicant in CA 662/13.
CORAM : M. S. SONAK, J.
Date of Reserving the Judgment : 20 April 2015.
Date of Pronouncing the Judgment : 24 April 2015.
JUDGMENT :-
1] This Civil Revision Application is directed against the judgment and order dated 30 March 2009 made by the learned City Civil Court at Bombay in Miscellaneous Civil Appeal No. 205 of 2008 instituted by the applicants.
2] By the impugned order, the City Civil Court has dismissed the appeal against the order dated 18 September 2008 made by the Inquiry Officer, Municipal Corporation Greater Mumbai under Chapter V-A of the Mumbai Municipal Corporation Act, 1888 (MMC Act).
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3] By an Agreement for Sale dated 30 June 1984, Kailas Seva
Sadan, a Trust agreed to sell the property comprising inter alia S.K. Patil Arogya Dham and Piramal Hospital alongwith other lands and structures more particularly described in the 1 st schedule to such Agreement for Sale (said property) to Municipal Corporation Greater Mumbai (MCGM). The MCGM was also placed in possession of the said property. The impugned order concerns premises from out of one of the buildings from the said property, allotted to late Laxman K. Kudalkar, being staff quarter, as admittedly, said Laxman Kudalkar was one of the employees of the Kailas Seva Sadan Trust. In the year 2002, the MCGM initiated eviction proceedings under Chapter V-A of the said MMC Act against the said Laxman. An eviction order was initially made on 22 July 2002, however, the same was set aside and the matter was remanded to the Inquiry Officer for fresh consideration. The Inquiry Officer made yet another eviction order on 18 September 2008. The applicants' appeal against the same was dismissed by the City Civil Court by the impugned order. Hence, the present revision application.
4] Ms Pallavi Dabholkar, learned counsel for the revision applicants, submitted that the suit premises did not answer the definition of 'corporation premises' within the meaning assigned to this terms under Section 105-A(b) of the MMC Act, since the suit premises neither belongs to nor were vested in or taken on lease by the MCGM. In such circumstances, neither Laxman Kudalkar, nor his legal representatives (present applicants) could ever be regarded as in 'unauthorised occupation in relation to any corporation premises' as defined under Section 105-A(d) of the said Act. Elaborating further, Ms Dabholkar submitted that the claim of the MCGM to the suit premises was entirely based upon the Agreement for Sale dated 30 2/11 ::: Downloaded on - 25/04/2015 00:00:36 ::: dss judgment cra-215-09 @ cac-662-13 June 1984. In terms of Section 54 of the Transfer of Property Act, 1882, Agreement for Sale by itself did not create any interest in or charge upon the suit premises and on the strength of such agreement, MCGM cannot claim to have become the owner of the suit premises. In this regard, reliance was placed upon the decision of this Court in case of Padma Nair Vs. Deputy Collector, Valuation and Stamp Duty and anr.1. Ms Dabholkar placed reliance upon the decision of the Hon'ble Supreme Court in case of Rajkumar Devindra Singh and anr. vs. The State of Punjab and ors. 2, and submitted that since the entry of Laxman Kudalkar in the suit premises was prior to MCGM obtaining possession of the said property, late Laxman Kudalkar could never have been regarded as an unauthorised occupant in respect of the suit premises. Ms Dabholkar, finally submitted that Kailas Seva Sadan was a Trust registered under the Bombay Public Trusts Act, 1950 and therefore, the said Trust, could have never transferred the said property to the MCGM without obtaining sanction from the Charity Commissioner in terms of Section 36(1) of Bombay Public Trusts Act, 1950. In this regard, Ms Dabholkar placed reliance upon the decision in case of Chandrabhan Chunnilal Gour vs. Dr. Shrawan Kumar Khunnolal Gour3, which lays down even ex-post facto sanction from the Charity Commissioner does not validate a transaction entered into without obtaining previous sanction of the Charity Commissioner. For all these reasons, Ms Dabholkar, submitted that the impugned order is liable to be set aside.
5] Mr. R.S. Apte, learned senior counsel for the MCGM, submitted that late Laxman Kudalkar had been allotted the suit 1 1994 Mh.L.J. 497 2 (1973) 1 SCC 51 3 AIR 1980 Bombay 48 3/11 ::: Downloaded on - 25/04/2015 00:00:36 ::: dss judgment cra-215-09 @ cac-662-13 premises, in his capacity as a staff member of the Hospital which was earlier run by Kailas Seva Sadan Trust. The allotment was, at the highest, co-terminus with the services of the said Laxman Kudalkar, since admittedly suit premises were staff quarters. Had Laxman Kudalkar been in service, he would have retired long time ago and his possession after retirement would be unauthorised. Mr. Kudalkar, has since expired, and the legal representatives have absolutely no rights qua the suit premises. In so far as the definition of the expression 'corporation premises' as contained in Section 105- A(b) of the MMC Act is concerned, relying upon the decision of this Court in case of M. Mohammed vs. Union of India4, Mr. Apte submitted that the expressions 'belonging to, or vesting in' are required to be construed widely. Thus construed, the suit premises, indeed constitute 'corporation premises' as defined under Section 105-A(b) of the MMC Act.
6] Mr. Apte, submitted that the MCGM has taken out Civil Application No. 662 of 2013 in the present proceedings, as the building, in which the suit premises are located is in a dilapidated condition and there is urgent necessity of pulling the same down in order to avoid any untoward incident. In view of the interim order, granted by this Court in the present case, the MCGM is disabled from initiating appropriate proceedings to secure eviction of the applicants, on the ground that the building is in a dilapidated condition. For this reason, Mr. Apte urged that the interim relief be vacated/modified or at least the revision application be disposed of finally, at the earliest.
7] The rival contentions now fall for determination.
4 AIR 1982 Bombay 443
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8] There is no serious dispute that the MCGM came to be placed
in possession of the said property, which include suit premises, in pursuance of agreement dated 30 June 1984. In terms of such agreement, the MCGM had paid Rs.12,00,000/- to Kailas Seva Sadan Trust, by way of part payment. There is nothing on record that the Kailas Seva Sadan Trust has any grievances or issues as against the MCGM in so far as the said property or the suit premises are concerned.
9] Chapter V-A of the MMC Act, confers power upon the MCGM to evict persons from corporation premises. Section 105-A(b) of the MMC Act defines the term 'corporation premises' in the following terms:
"(b) "corporation premises" means any premises belonging to, or vesting in, or taken on lease by, the corporation."
10] Similarly, Section 105-A(d) of the MMC Act defines the expression 'unauthorised occupation in relation to any corporation premises' in the following terms:
"(d) "unauthorised occupation in relation to any corporation premises" means the occupation by any person of corporation premises without authority for such occupations; and includes the continuance in occupation by any person of the premises after the authority under which he was allowed to occupy the premises has expired, or has been duly determined."
11] Section 105-B of the MMC Act provides that where the Commissioner is satisfied, inter alia, that any person is in unauthorised occupation of any corporation premises, the Commissioner may notwithstanding anything contained in any law for the time being in force,by notice, order that that person, as well 5/11 ::: Downloaded on - 25/04/2015 00:00:36 ::: dss judgment cra-215-09 @ cac-662-13 as any other person who may be in occupation of the whole or any part of the premises, shall vacate them within one month of the date of the service of the notice. Prior to making any such order, the Commissioner is obliged to serve a show cause notice upon the occupants as to why such order should not be made. Section 105-F of the MMC Act provides an appeal against the order made by the Commissioner under Section 105-B to an appellate officer, who shall be the principal Judge of the City Civil Court of Bombay or such other judicial officer in Brihan Mumbai of not less than ten year's standing, as the principal Judge may designate in this behalf.
12] Section 105-A(b) of the MMC Act, defines the expression 'corporation premises' to mean premises belonging to, or vesting in, or taken on lease by, the corporation. The expression 'belonging to' is required to be interpreted in the context of summary powers of eviction vested in the Commissioner of MCGM. The expression 'belonging to' in this context, therefore, cannot be equated to the expression 'owned by' or 'having title to'. Rather, such expression shall have to be construed widely. Therefore, there is no scope to apply the provisions contained in Section 54 of the Transfer of Property Act, 1882 for the purposes of deciding whether the suit premises belong to the MCGM in the context of provisions contained in Chapter V-A of the MMC Act. Similarly, the expression 'vesting in' shall also have to be widely construed in the context of summary powers of eviction conferred upon the Commissioner of MCGM under Chapter V-A of the MMC Act.
13] In case of M.Mohammed (supra), the Division Bench of this Court was concerned with the interpretation of the expression 'public premises' under the Public Premises (Eviction of Unauthorised 6/11 ::: Downloaded on - 25/04/2015 00:00:36 ::: dss judgment cra-215-09 @ cac-662-13 Occupants) Act, 1971. Such definition, which is contained in Section 2(e) of the 1971 Act, provides that the public premises shall inter alia, mean "any premises belonging to, or taken on lease or requisitioned by, or on behalf of, the Central Government, ...........".
[Emphasis supplied] 14] In the aforesaid context, the Division Bench of this Court, in case of M. Mohamad (supra), has held that there is no issue that the expression 'belonging to' does not mean the same thing as 'owned by'.
The two expressions have two different connotations. The expression 'belonging to' will take within its sweep not only ownership but also rights lesser than that of ownership. It must be remembered in this connection that the expression used in the legislation are to be interpreted and given meaning in the context in which they are used. The 1971 Act has been placed on the statute book to give a summary remedy to the Government to evict persons in occupation of public premises to obviate the long ordeal of trial in a Civil Court and of further proceedings thereafter. Hence, the wider meaning will have to be given to the expressions used for determining the concept of public premises. So, viewed, there is no reason as to why the premises of which possession for the time being vests in the Government and which are allotted by the Government to others while so in possession should not be held to be public premises.
15] The Division Bench of this Court, in case of M. Mohammed (supra) made reference to the decision of Hon'ble Apex Court in case of Mahomed Amir Ahmad Khan vs. Municipal Board of Sitapur 5 wherein, the Hon'ble Supreme Court was called upon to consider the expression 'belonging to me' used by the tenant in an application to 5 AIR 1965 SC 1923 7/11 ::: Downloaded on - 25/04/2015 00:00:36 ::: dss judgment cra-215-09 @ cac-662-13 the Compensation Officer under Act 26 of 1948 for the Rehabilitation of Refugees. In paragraph 14 of the judgment, the Hon'ble Apex Court has observed thus:
"Now to revert to paragraphs 2,5 and 8 which the learned Judges considered amounted to a clear and unequivocal denial of the Government's title, they referred in para 2 to the words 'belonging to me' as constituting a disclaimer of the tenancy and a repudiation of the landlord's title. We do not agree that this is the only or proper construction which the words are capable of bearing. Though the word 'belonging' no doubt is capable of denoting an absolute title, is nevertheless not confined to connoting that sense. Even possession of an interest less than that of full ownership could be signified by that word. In Webster 'belong to' is explained as meaning inter alia 'to be owned by be the possession of'. The precise sense which the word was meant to convey can therefore be gathered only by reading the document as a whole and adverting to the context in which it occurs. ... ... ...."
[Emphasis supplied] 16] Applying the aforesaid principles to the facts of the present case, there is no reason to fault the impugned order, which has taken view that the suit premises answer the definition of 'corporation premises' as contained in Section 105-A(b) of the MMC Act. As noted earlier, there is no dispute that the MCGM, in pursuance of Agreement dated 30 June 1984 is in absolute possession of the said property, which includes inter alia the suit premises. There is nothing on record that the Kailas Seva Sadan Trust has objected to the absolute possession and user of the said property by the MCGM. The MCGM, as admittedly, paid consideration of Rs.12,00,000/- in respect of said premises. As of today, it is submitted that apart from the applicants, rest of the occupants, have vacated the said property, particularly since the same is in a dilapidated condition. In the light of such circumstances, it cannot be said that the suit premises are not premises belonging to or vesting in the MCGM. The concept of 8/11 ::: Downloaded on - 25/04/2015 00:00:36 ::: dss judgment cra-215-09 @ cac-662-13 ownership or title may be relevant qua the Kailas Seva Sadan Trust, which is vendor as per the Agreement dated 30 June 1984. However, in so far as the suit premises qua the applicants are concerned, it cannot be said that the same are not 'corporation premises'.
17] The decision of the Supreme Court, in case of Rajkumar D. Singh (supra), is not at all applicable to the facts and circumstances of the present case. This is because, the definition of unauthorised occupation of public premises as contained in Section 3 of the Punjab Public Premises and Land (Eviction and Rent Recovery) Act, 1959 is quite different from the definition of the expression 'unauthorised occupation in relation to any corporation premises' as contained in Section 105-A(d) of the MMC Act. The expression in the MMC Act specifically includes the continuance in occupation by any person of the premises after the authority under which he was allotted to occupy the premises has expired, or has been duly determined.
18] Similarly, the decision in case of Chandrabhan C. Gour (supra), is also not relevant, as it concerns the issue of ownership or title to the said property on the basis of sale without obtaining sanction from the Charity Commissioner under Section 36(1) of the Bombay Public Trusts Act, 1950. As noted earlier, the expressions 'belonging to' or 'vesting in' as appear in Section 105-A(b) of the MMC Act are required to be construed widely. Such expressions, would consequently include rights lesser than that of ownership.
19] In the aforesaid circumstances, therefore, it cannot be said that the impugned order is in excess of jurisdiction or that the City 9/11 ::: Downloaded on - 25/04/2015 00:00:37 ::: dss judgment cra-215-09 @ cac-662-13 Civil Court in exercise of its jurisdiction, has acted with any material of irregularity.
20] Since, there is no reason to interfere with the impugned order, there is no necessity to make any order in Civil Application No. 662 of 2013, which is disposed of accordingly.
21] Accordingly, Rule is discharged in Civil Revision Application No. 215 of 2009. The interim order stands vacated.
22] There shall be no order as to costs.
(M. S. SONAK, J.) 23] At this stage, the learned counsel for the applicants states that four months time may be granted to vacate the suit premises, so that in the meanwhile, the applicants are in a position to secure alternate accommodation. Considering that the applicants have been occupying the suit premises for last number of years and further, there was interim relief pending this revision application, the request is reasonable. Accordingly, the respondent - Corporation is directed, not to execute / implement the orders dated 18 September 2008 and 30 March 2009 for a period of four months from today. However, this indulgence, is subject to, all the applicants filing in this Court the usual undertaking within a period of two weeks from today, that they shall stay in the suit premises at their own risk and consequences and further that they shall not create any third party rights or induct any other person or persons therein. The undertaking, shall also state that after the expiry of four months 10/11 ::: Downloaded on - 25/04/2015 00:00:37 ::: dss judgment cra-215-09 @ cac-662-13 from today, unless, the applicants obtain any interim or final orders from the Hon'ble Apex Court, shall hand over the vacant and peaceful possession of the suit premises to the Municipal Corporation. This indulgence shall be operative only in the event, all the applicants file undertaking / affidavit to the aforesaid effect in this Court within a period of two weeks from today with intimation /copy of the Municipal Corporation.
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