V.S. TALWAR V. PREM CHANDRA SHARMA, AIR 1984 SC 664
FACTS
The respondent was admitted into a tenancy of the premises under a lease deed, Clause 12 thereof provided:
That the lessee shall use the premises for the purpose of Residential/Personal office only and not for commercial purposes.
The landlord appellant applied to Controller for eviction of the respondent u/s 14(1)(e) of the Delhi Rent Control Act, 1958. The tenant pleaded that the premises were let out both for residential as also office and the composite purpose of the tenancy took the premises out of the purview of residential accommodation.
PROCEDURAL HISTORY
Rent Controller: did not accept the defence and passed the order for eviction.
Delhi High Court: held that, it is well-known that the premises may be let out for residence only, for use as an office, for use as a shop and for other commercial purpose. Once any of the latter purposes is combined with the purpose of use as residence, the premises is let out for a composite purpose and not for residence only.
ISSUE
What is the interpretation of the term “office”?
JUDGEMENT
The court observed that the word “office” is used in different senses and in each case that meaning must be assigned to it which conforms with the language used.
In this view of the position the High Court was not right in picking one of the meanings given to the word in the Chamber’s Dictionary and proceeding to the conclusion that “office” is certainly not residence and a letting purpose which includes office must be understood to include a purpose other than residence only.
The parties to the document were anxious enough and took proper care in order to keep the user of the premises confined to residential purpose; that is why it was expressly stipulated in the lease to prohibit commercial user. Even while permitting an office to be located, equal care was taken to put the word “personal” before “office” to convey the idea that the tenant would not be entitled to transact official business connected with his avocation. Although ordinarily an office would mean the place where official business is transacted, a personal office in contradistinction to an office simpliciter or a commercial office would be a place where an outsider would not normally be admitted; commercial transactions would not take place; there would be no fixity of the location and the tenant would be entitled to use any portion of the premises as his personal office and the like.
There was no description of any existing office room and available for such use to the tenant, nor was space earmarked for any personal office out of this accommodation. n. As indicated above it was in the discretion of the lessee to use any part as a personal office.
Therefore, the High Court went wrong in reversing the decision of the Rent Controller. The appeal was allowed, the order of the High Court was set aside and the order of the Rent Controller was restored.