2002 PLD 355 LAHORE-HIGH-COURT-LAHORE

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Khawaja ANWAR HASSAN VS NAVEED AHMAD CHAUDHRY West Pakistan Urban Rent Restriction Ordinance 1959--13 , West Pakistan Urban Rent Restriction Ordinance 1959 S. 13(6)---Recovery of arrears or future rent---Jurisdiction of Rent Controller under S.13(6) of the West Pakistan Urban Rent Restriction Ordinance, 1959---Tenant failed to deposit tentative rent, resultantly his defence was struck off and possession of the premises was handed over to the landlord---Rent Controller directed the tenant to deposit the arrears of rent and future rent as determined under S.13(6) of the West Pakistan Urban Rent Restriction Ordinance, 1959---Direction of the Rent Controller was affirmed by Appellate Court---Plea raised by the tenant was that arrears and future rent could not be recovered as decided in the tentative rent order ---Validity--When tentative rent order as passed under the provisions of S.13(6) of the West Pakistan Urban Rent Restriction Ordinance, 1959, was not complied with, the only option left with the Rent Controller was to strike off the defence of the tenant and :order for his eviction---While doing so, the Rent Controller had no jurisdiction to pass order for the recovery of arrears or the future rent, because according to the first part of S.13(6) of the West Pakistan Urban Rent Restriction Ordinance, 1959, the Rent Controller could only approximately fix the rent and direct the tenant to make such payment--If the tenant made default in the compliance of such order, his defence. was liable to be struck off and the landlord was to be put in possession of the property without any further proceedings in the case---Amount of the rent due from the tenant was finally determined under the second part of S.13(6) of the West Pakistan Urban Rent Restriction Ordinance, 1959, and after such determination the tenant could then be directed to pay the same to the landlord---Stage of final determination, under the second part of S.13(6) of the West Pakistani Urban Rent Restriction Ordinance, 1959, would only reach if the determination had been made on the basis of the evidence on record---Where the defence had been struck off under the first part of S.13(6) of the West Pakistan Urban Rent Restriction Ordinance, 159, the stage did not reach that point and therefore, the Rent Controller had no jurisdiction to determine the final amount due from the tenant---Orders passed by the Court below directing the tenant to make payment of rent were illegal, without jurisdiction, without lawful authority and the same were set aside.