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J U D G M E N T THOMAS.J The controversy between the parties in this appeal has narrowed down to a very short question. A building became roofless before "allotment order' was passed under Section 16(1) of U.P. Urban Buildings [Regulation of Letting, Rent and Eviction] Act, 1972 [for short' the Act'] The question now remains in this appeal is: should the structure have necessarily been a roofed one on the date of allotment order?

A summary of facts, out of which the said question has emerged, is given below:

A building situated at Meerut City owned by the contesting respondents' father [Sana Ullah] was let out to one Deep Chand Gupta for a period of 5 years. On the expiry of lease period i.e. 3.8.1974, Deep Chand Gupta surrendered vacant possession of the building to the landlord. On 20.8 1974, the present appellant moved an application before the District Magistrate [who is the competent authority for passing allotment order under the Act] for allotment of the said premises to him. Sana Ullah filed his objections on 3. 9.1974, in which he contended, inter alia, that the structure was not a "building" inasmuch as it had no roof then. The District Magistrate found that the structure was still a building and hence appellant was entitled to its allotment. The case had thereafter passed through a chequered career District Judge [the revisional authority under the Act] remanded the case on two occasions to the District Magistrate for arriving at certain findings on facts. Finally it was found that the building was a roofed structure when Deep Chand Gupta vacated it, but subsequently its tin roofs were dismantled by the owner of the building and that the structure remained roofless even on the date of allotment order. Nevertheless, allotment order was passed by the District Magistrate. Pursuant thereto the appellant occupied the building. In the revision learned District Judge held that District Magistrate had jurisdiction to allot such structure to the tenant and confirmed to the allotment order.

"building, means a residential or non residential roofed structure and includes

(i) any land (including any garden), garages houses appurtenant to such building;

(ii) any furniture supplied by the landlord for use in such building;

(iii) any fittings and fixtures affixed to such building for the more benefitial enjoyment thereof."

It is clear from the definition that any structure without roof cannot fall within the ambit of the definition. Here the factual position is this: The structure remained a roofed building when it became vacant but the roof was later dismantled by the owner. So on the date of allotment order it remained rootless.

If a structure was a building as per the definition at the time when it fell vacant, the District Magistrate, no doubt, gets jurisdiction to initiate proceedings for passing allotment order. But would he lose jurisdiction merely because the structure became roofless subsequently? No doubt, if we go by the definition in Section 3(i) stricto sensu, the structure without roof will cease to be building. But a roofless structure can still continue to be building outside the fixed borders of the definition. It is now necessary to notice that Section 3 of the Act, which contains all. the definition clauses, prefaces with the words "unless the context otherwise requires". Thus the legislature which fixed contours for different expressions through the definition. clauses has also provided sufficient play at the joints for contextual adaptations. In other words, contextual varfations are not impermissible under the Act if such variations are necessary to achieve the object of the enactment. Outside the definition in Section 3 of the Act the word "building" need not necessarily be a roofed structure for even roofless structures are, sometimes, used as buildings in certain circumstances.