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"2 (1 ) "tenant" means any person by whom or on whose account or behalf the rent of any premises is, or but for a special contract would be, payable and includes a subtenant and also any person continuing in possession after the termination of his tenancy but shah not include any person against whom any order or decree for eviction has been made;"

This definition has been amended by Act 18 of 1976 but the amended definition also provides by s. 2(1) (A) that the word 'tenant' shall not include any person against whom an order or decree for eviction has been made, except where such decree or order for eviction is liable to be re-opened under the proviso to section 3 of the Amending Act of 1976. It is thus clear that in so far as the Delhi Rent Control Act is concerned, a person against whom an order or a decree for eviction has been passed cannot generally, be regarded as a tenant. The question which requires consideration is whether the definition of 'tenant' contained in the Delhi Rent Control Act can be extended to proceedings under the Slum Clearance Act, or, in other words, whether the word 'tenant' which occurs in cl.(a) of s. 19(1) of the Slum Clearance Act bears the same meaning which it has under the Delhi Rent Control Act.

Learned counsel for the respondent relied very strongly on a decision of this Court in Lakhmi Chand v. Kauran Devi(3) in support of his submission that the word 'tenant' must bear the same meaning in the Slum Clearance Act as in the Delhi Rent Control Act. We are unable to appreciate how the judgment in that ease supports the contention of the respondent. All that was decided therein was that a person against whom an order for eviction is passed cannot be a tenant within the meaning of the Delhi Rent Control Act and that the definition of the word 'tenant' as contained in that Act would not be affected by anything contained in s. 19 of the Slum Clearance Act. The question which arose in that case was whether s. 50 of the Delhi Rent Control Act barred the jurisdiction of the civil court to entertain a suit in relation to any premises to which that Act applied, for eviction of a 'tenant' therefrom. Not only that no question arose in that case as to whether the definition of 'tenant' as contained in the Delhi Rent' Control Act should be extended to the Slum Clearance Act, but the Court ob- served expressly that: "No question as to what the rights of a tenant against whom a decree in ejectment has been passed in view of Section 19 of the Slum Areas Act are, arises in this appeal", and .that the Court was not concerned in the appeal before it "with any question as to the protection given (1) [1962] 2 S.C.R. 125. 2 AIR 1972 Delhi 34 (3) [1966] 2 S.C.R. by the Slum Areas Act. to tenants" .... The question before us is not whether a person against whom a decree for eviction is passed is a tenant for the purposes of the Delhi Rent Control Act but whether he is a tenant for the purposes of s. 19 of the Slum Clearance Act. .Lakhmi Chand's (supra) case does not deal with this problem at all.