Property Law – Declaration of Title – Burden of Proof – Plaintiff seeking declaration of title and mandatory injunction against defendant alleged to have encroached and constructed house – Held: In a suit for declaration, plaintiff must affirmatively prove her own title and also the title of her vendors – Failure to establish identity of property and boundaries fatal ...
Rent Control and Eviction Laws – Public Premises (Eviction of Unauthorised Occupants) Act, 1971 vs. State Rent Control Acts – Overriding Effect – Conflict between Suhas H. Pophale v. Oriental Insurance Co. Ltd. (2014) and Ashoka Marketing Ltd. v. Punjab National Bank (1990) – Held: Suhas H. Pophale laid down incorrect law by holding that the PP Act 1971 is prospective and d...
Banking Law – Pledge of Gold Ornaments – Right of Redemption – Petitioner availed gold loan repayable by 12.01.2025 – Bank conducted auction on 17.01.2025 without observing 30-day post-maturity redemption period stipulated in contract – Held: Premature auction violated Section 176 of Contract Act and terms of pledge – Petitioner’s offer to pay dues two day...
Partition Suit – Nature of Property – Hindu Succession Act, 1956 – Section 6 vs. Section 8 – Plaintiff claimed that her grandfather’s properties were self-acquired and sought partition—Defendants contended that the properties were ancestral and already partitioned by a registered deed dated 19.12.1973—Held: Plaintiff failed to prove that properties were se...
Tenancy Law - Rent Control – Eviction – Bona Fide Requirement – Reconstruction of Building – Landlord sought eviction of tenant from commercial shop to reconstruct integrated block of 5 shops into hotel and restaurant for himself and his son – Son had undergone training and expressed intent to operate business – Courts below found requirement genuine – Hel...
Rent Control Law – Estoppel of Tenant – Challenge to Derivative Title – Context of tenant challenging the title of the landlord who claimed ownership via a Will – Held: Section 116 of the Evidence Act creates a statutory estoppel preventing a tenant from challenging the title of the landlord during the continuance of the tenancy. The petitioner-bank argued that the responde...
Property Law – Agricultural Tenancy – New Tenure Land – Transfer without permission – Respondents (original plaintiffs) filed suit for possession of agricultural land after State dropped land acquisition proceedings – Appellant (original defendant society) took possession under MOU and claimed to have paid entire consideration – Courts below held land was new te...
Tenancy Law – Period of Tenancy – Dispute over duration – Plaintiff claimed tenancy continued beyond 31.03.2017 – Defendants asserted surrender on that date – Court held that implied surrender was established under Section 111(f) of Transfer of Property Act – Finding based on tender of surrender letter, affixation of notice, and shifting of office to new premise...
Property Law – Family Settlement – Proof – Plaintiffs claimed ownership and possession based on oral family settlement and subsequent memorandum dated 02.02.2006 – Courts below held that no oral settlement was proved and memorandum Ex.P7 did not reference any prior settlement – Held: No evidence to establish original oral partition – Memorandum of settlement dat...
SARFAESI Act – Civil Court Jurisdiction – Fraud Pleaded Without Details – Bar Under Section 34 Ignored – Trial Court Order Set Aside – Respondent-plaintiff filed civil suit challenging SARFAESI possession proceedings by alleging fraud in relinquishment deed – Trial court granted ex parte stay against possession without considering bar of jurisdiction under Secti...