Bind Basni Prasad J. - (1.) This is a plff.'s appeal from the judgment of the learned Civil Judge of Agra dated 31-1-1950. The relevant facts are as follows : The plff. is the deft.s' tenant in a house situate in the City of Agra. In 1945 & 1947 the defts. unsuccessfully applied to the District Magistrate for permission to evict the plff. from the house. He made a third application in 1948 & on 22-7-1948, the District Magistrate passed the following order: "This is an application for permission to eject through the Civil Court Ghanshiamdass a tenant of the applicant's house. An application by the same parties was made in 1945 & rejected. A second application, was made again in 1947 & was rejected on 18-11-1917. The applicant himself is occupying another man's house for his business & an application has now been made for permission to eject him. Under the circumstances permission is accorded to eject him, Ghanshiam Dass through the Civil Court." After the grant of this permission, the tenant (the plff. in the present case) brought a suit (No. 122 of 1948), from which this appeal arises, on 31-8-1948, in the Court of the Civil Judge at Agra, for a declaration that the aforesaid order of the District Magistrate was null & void & ineffectual so as to enable the landlords to eject him. Near about the same time, the landlords brought a suit for ejectment against the tenant (Suit No. 724 of 1948) in the Court of the Munsif of Agra. This was transferred to the Court of the Civil Judge & both the suits were heard together by him. He dismissed the tenants' suit, but decreed the landlords' suit. The tenant, therefore, comes in appeal as against the decree passed in suit No. 122 of 1948. An appeal is pending in the Court of the District Judge at Agra from the decree passed in suit No. 724 of 1948. The appellant made an application for the transfer of that appeal to this Court, but it was rejected.
(2.) No evidence was adduced in the Court below. The question is mainly one of interpretation.
(3.) During the War there was difficulty about accommodation & Orders were made, firstly, under the Defence of India Rules to restrict the rights of landlords under the Transfer of Property Act for the ejectment of the tenants. With the lapse of the Defence of India Rules, those Orders ceased & then Ordinances were made making provisions to the same effect. Ultimately, the Ordinances were replaced by the U. P. (Temporary) Control of Bent & Eviction Act, 1947 (Act III [3] of 1947). The second para, of the Preamble of this Act provides as follows : "And whereas due to the shortage of accommodation in the United Provinces it is expedient to provide for the continuance during a limited period of powers to control the letting & the rent of such accommodation & to prevent the eviction of tenants therefrom.";