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5. The trial judge had examined the judgment of the Apex Court reported in 1985(1) RCR 459 Gian Devi Anand Vs. Jeevan Kumar & Ors.. It was held that the tenancy had devolved upon the defendant being the legal heir of his father. The judgment reported in 148(2008) DLT 705 (SC) Satyawati Sharma (dead) by LRs Vs. Union of India had been distinguished. It was held that the said judgment had not in any manner overruled the proposition of Gian Devi‟s judgment; what was under examination before the Apex Court in the case of Satyawati was the vires of Section 14(1)(e) of the DRC Act and the Court had held that no distinction can be drawn between a non-residential or a residential property as far as the bonafide need of the landlord is concerned under Section 14(1)(e) of the Act.

(e) was struck down.

7. The suit filed by the plaintiff was seeking possession of the suit land; it was a commercial property. Gian Devi (supra) had decided the issue of heritability of the tenancy rights of commercial premises and which proposition was not in challenge in the case of Satyawati.

8. The oft quoted paragraph of the judgment of Gian Devi is reproduced herein below and reads as follows:

"In the Delhi Act, the Legislature has thought it fit to make provisions regulating the right to inherit the tenancy rights in respect of residential premises. The relevant provisions are contained in Section 2(1)(iii) of the Act. With regard to the commercial premises, the Legislature in the Act under consideration has thought it fit not to make any such provision.............. As in the present Act, there is no provision regulating the rights of the heirs to inherit the tenancy rights of the tenanted premises which is commercial premises, the tenancy right which is heritable devolves on the heirs under the ordinary law of succession. ...... We are of the opinion that in cases of commercial premises governed by the Delhi Act, the Legislature has not though it fit in the light of situation at Delhi to place any kind of restriction on the ordinary law of inheritance with regard to succession. In the absence of any provision restricting the heritability of tenancy in respect of the commercial premises only establishes that commercial tenancies notwithstanding the determinate of the contractual tenancy will devolve on the heirs in accordance with law and the heirs who steps into the position of the deceased tenant will continue to enjoy in the protection afforded by the Act and they; can be only be evicted in accordance with the provisions of the Act."