Fair Rent, Controller, Tenant, Landlord
THE WEST BENGAL
PREMISES TENANCY ACT, 1997
[WEST BENGAL ACT XXXVII OF 1997]
[Assent of the President of India was first published in the Calcutta Gazette,
Extraordinary, Part III, of the 28th December, 1998]
An Act to provide for the regulation of certain incidents of tenancy of premises in
Calcutta, Howrah and some other areas in West Bengal.
WHEREAS it is expedient to provide for the regulation of certain incidents of tenancy of
premises in Calcutta, Howrah and some other areas in West Bengal;
It is hereby enacted in the Forty-eighth Year of the Republic of India, by the Legislature
of West Bengal, as follows :
CHAPTER I
Preliminary
- Short title, commencement and extent.—(1) This Act may be called the West
Bengal Premises Tenancy Act, 1997.
(2) It shall come into force on such date1
as the State Government may, by notification,
appoint.
(3) It extends to the areas included within the limits of the Calcutta Municipal Corporation
and the Howrah Municipal Corporation and to the municipal areas within the meaning of
the West Bengal Municipal Act, 1993 (West Bengal Act XXII of 1993):
Provided that the State Government may, by notification, extend this Act or any provision
thereof to any other area specified in the notification, or may, by notification, exclude any
area from the operation of this Act or any provision thereof. - Definitions.—In this Act, unless there is anything repugnant in the subject or
context,—
(a) “Controller” means a Controller appointed under sub-section (1) of section 38, and
includes an Additional Controller or Deputy Controller appointed under sub-section (2) of
that section;
(b) “fair rent” means the rent fixed under section 17;
1 10th day of July, 2001 vide Notification No. 3052-L, Ref., dated 9th July, 2001 (published in the Kolkata Gazette, dated 9th July, 2001).
2
(c) “landlord” includes any person who, for the time being, is receiving, or is entitled to
receive, the rent for any premises, whether on his own account or on account of, or on
behalf of, or for the benefit of, any other person or as a trustee, guardian or receiver for
any other person or who would so receive the rent or be entitled to receive the rent, if the
premises were let to a tenant;
(d) “notification” means a notification published in the Official Gazette;
(e) “premises” means any building or part of a building or any hut or part of a hut let
separately, and includes—
(i) the gardens, grounds and out-houses, if any, appertaining thereto, and
(ii) any furniture supplied by the landlord or any fittings or fixtures affixed, for the
use of the tenant in such building or part of a building or hut or part of a hut, but
does not include a room in a hotel or a lodging house;
(f) “prescribed” means prescribed by rules made under this Act;
(g) “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 any person
continuing in possession after termination of his tenancy and, in the event of death of
any tenant, also includes, for a period not exceeding five years from the date of death of
such tenant or from the date of coming into force of this Act, whichever is later, his
spouse, son, daughter, parent and the widow of his predeceased son, who were
ordinarily living with the tenant up to the date of death of the tenant as the members of
his family and were dependent on him and who do not own or occupy any residential
premises, and 2
[in respect of premises let out for non-residential purpose his spouse,
son, daughter and parent who were ordinarily living with the tenant up to the date of his
death as members of his family, and were dependant on him or a person authorised by
the tenant who is in possession of such premises] but shall not include any person
against whom any decree or order for eviction has been made by a Court of competent
jurisdiction:
Provided that the time-limit of five years shall not apply to the spouse of the tenant who
was ordinarily living with the tenant up to his death as a member of his family and was
dependent on him and who does not own or occupy any residential premises,
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