9
THE KERALA TENANTS AND KUDIKIDAPPUKARS
PROTECTION ACT, 1963
(Act 7 of 1963) CONTEN'TS
Preamble.
~ Sections.
I· · Short title, extent, commencement and duration.
2. Temporary stay of enforcement of nghts, privileges. etc .. under certam enactments.
3. Definitions.
4. Exemptions.
5. Stay of eviction of tenants and kudikJdappukars.
6. Stay of suits and proceedings for recovery of arrears of rent.
7. Rent payable by K udikidappukaran.
8. Interest on arrears of rent.
9. Remission of rent. I 0. R1ght to prove real nature of transaction.
II. Prionty of claim for arrears of rent.
12. Limitation.
13. Power to make rules.
14. Act to overnde other laws, etc.
15. Repeal and saving.
ACT 7 OF 1963"'
THE KERALA TENANTS AND KUDIKJDAPPUKARS
PROTECTION ACT, 1963
An Act to provzde for the tempa~ary protectzon of tenants and A.udzkzdappukar in the State of Kerala
Prcamble.-Whereas it Is expedient to provide for the temporary Protection of tenants and kudikidappukars in the State of Kcrala , Be it enacted m the Thit teenth Year of the Repubhc of India as follows:-
1. Short tztle, extent, commencement and duratzo1z.-( I) This Act may be called the Kerala Tenants and Kud1kidappukars Protection Act,
1963.
• Received the assent of the Governor on 13th February 1963. Published m the Gazette Extra-ordinary ,dated 13th February 1963.
10
(2) It extends to the whole of the State of Kcrala.
(3) It shall come into force at once and shall cease to have effect on the 31st day ofDecember 1963.
( 4) Upon the exp1ry of this Act, the provisions of section 4 of the InterpretatiOn and General Clauses Act, I 125 (Act VII of I 125), shall apply as if this Ac.t had then been repealed by an Act of the Kerala State Legislature.
2. Temporary stay of t1ijorcemcnt of rights, prwzleges, etc., wzder certazn enactments.-Durmg the penod of operation of this Act, no suit or other proceedings-
(z) for the recogmtion or enforcement of any right, privilege• obligatiOn or liability acquired, accrued or incurred unde1 the Kerala Agranan Relations Act, 1960 (Act 4 of 1961), or the Kerala Ryotwari Tenants and Kudtkidappukat~ ProtectiOn Act, 1962 (Act 18 of 1962), or the Madras Cultivatmg Tenants (Payment of Fair Rent) Act, 1956 (Act XXIV of 1956); or
(zz) for the fixation of fai1 rent under the Malabar Tenancy Act, 1929 (Act XIV of 1930),
shall be instituted m or before any com t, tribunal or other authority, and all such suits and proceedmgs pendmg before any court, tnbunal or other authority at the commencement ofthis Act shall be stayed.
3. Dcjznitzons.-In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,-
( I) " Cochm '' means the area comprising- ( z) the portiOn of the State of Kerala which befm e the first day of July 1949, formed the State of Cochin, less the enclaves absorbed m the Malabar dtstnct under the Provinces and States (Absorption of Enclaves) Order, 1950, and
(zz) the enclaves w:Hch formed part of the Malabar district absorbed in the State of Travancorc-Cochin under the sa1d Order;
(2) "customary dues" means onakazhcha, utsavakazhcha, perunnalkazhcha or aradiantharam or the like, due by the tenant or allowed to be taken by the landlord annually or periodically on spe- Cific dates <'r at petiod1cal mtervals or on the happening of any event or on the occasiOn of any festival, specified or not, but does not mclude rent or michavaram specified as such in the contract of tenancy ;
(3) " evictiOn" means the recovery of possession of land from a tenant or kudikidappukaran;
(4) "garden" means land used pnncipally for growmg coco- nut trees, arecanut tlees or both or used principally for growing pepper vine;
(5) " holding" means a parcel or parcels of land held under a single transaction by a tenant from a landlord and shall include any portion of a holdmg as above defined which the landlord and the tenant have agreed or are bound to treat as a separate holdmg;
I
I· ~
11
(6) ''hut" means any dwellmg house which has a value not exceeding four hundred rupees or the monthly rent of which does not exceed four rupees ;
(7) "intermediat y '' means any person who, not being a land- owner or mortgagee, has an mterest m the land and is entitled, by reason of such interest, to posse,ston thereof, but has transferred such possesston to any other person otherwtse than by way of mortgage ;
(8) " kanam " means the transfer for consideration m money or m kind or m both, by a landlord of an mterest m spectf'ic tmmovable property to another for the latter's enjoyment, whether descnbed in the document evtdencmg the transactiOn as kanam or kanapattom or by any other name, the mctdents of which transfer include-
(a) a right in the transferee to hold the satd property liable for the consideratiOn paid by lum or due to him ;
(b) the liability of the transferor to pay to the transferee mterest on such consideration unless otherwise agreed to by the parttes; and
(c) payment of mtchavaram or cutomary dues or renewal on the expiry of any spectfied period,
and, m areas m the State ofKerala other than Malabar, mcludes such transfer of interest 111 specific immovable property which is described in the document evtdencing the transaction as Ottt, Karipanayam, Panayam, Ner- panayam, or by any other name and which has the inctdents specified in Items (a) and (b) above and also the followmg incidents.-
(z) renewal on the expiry of any specified period, and (zt) payment of customary dues:
Provtded that kanapattom or any other demise governed by the Kanam Tenancy Act, 1955, shall not be deemed to be a kanam. Explanatzon.-For the purposes of thts clause, in a case where there has been no stipulatiOn in the document evidencing the transactiOn for renewal on the expiry of any spcctfied penod, but there has been a renewal or payment of renewal fees, 1t shal• be deemed that there had peen a provi
(9) " kanam-kuzhikanam " means and mcludes a transfer by a landlord to another (called the 'kanam-kuzh1kanamdar') of ga1den lands or of other lands or of both, with the fruit-beanng trees, if any, standmg thereon at the ttme of the transfer, for the enJoyment of those trees and for the pw pose of plantmg such frutt-beanng trees thereon, the incidents of wh1ch transfer mclude-
(a) a nght 111 the transferee to holu the said lands liable for the constderation patd by !urn or due to him, which consideration is called 'kanartham'; and
(b) the liability of the transferor to pay to the transferee mterest on the kanartham unless othet wise agreed to by the parties;
(//
I
12
( 10) "Kucilk1dappukaran" meam a pe1 son who has no home- stead or land, either as owner 01 as tenant in possession, to erect a homestead, and-
(t) who has been permitted with or without an obligation to pay 1ent by a person in lawful possession of any land to have the use and occupatiOn of a portion of such land for the purpose of erecting a homestead, or
(u) who has been perm1tted by a person in lawful possession of any land to occupy, with or without an obligation to pay rent, a hut bclongmg to such person and situate in the sa1d land,
but otherw1se has no interest in the land; and
" Kudikidappu " means the land and the homestead or the hut ~o permitted to be erected or occupied together w1th the easements attached thereto:
Provided that a per son shall not be deemed to be a kudikida- ppukaran 1f the aforesaid permiSSIOn was granted after the II th day of Apnl, 1957, by a mortgagee m possesswn or by a tenant who had no fixity of tenure at the time of granting the perm1ss10n:
Prov1ded further that a person shall not be deemed to be a kud1kidappukaran 1f the aforesaid permission was granted in respect of any hut not belongmg to h1m and situated-
(a) in any land principally planted with tea, coffee, rubber, cardamom or cinnamon, or
(b) in any area of land which is appurtenant to a mill, factory, or workshop,
and m connection with the employment of such person in the land so planted or, as the case may be, in the mill, factory or workshop, unless he was, immediately before the 15th day of February, 196 i, ent1tled to the nghts of a kudikidappukaran or the holder of a protected ulkudi or kudtkidappu under any law. Explanatwn I.-Any person who was in occupation of a kud1ki- dappu on the lith day of Ap1 il, 195 7, and who continued to be in such occupatiOn on the I Oth day of December, 1962, shall be deemed to be in occupation of such kud1k1dappu with permissiOn as required under this clause.
Explallatzoll I/.-Where any kudikidappukaran secures any mortgage with possessiOn over the land in wh1ch the kud1k1dappu is situate, his kudikidappu nght shall revive on the redemption of the mortgage, prov1ded that he has at the time of the redemptiOn no home- stead or land, e1ther as owne1 01 as tenant m possessiOn, to erect a homestead;
(II) " Kudiyinppu " means a holdmg or part of a holding consisting of the s1te of any residential buddmg, the site or sites of other butldings appurtenant thereto, such other lands as are necessary for the convenient enJoyment of such residential building and easements attached thereto, but does not mclude a kud1k1dappu;
II
I
I
I
\
I
I
I
I
,(21
I
I
I I
j
-----------------~
4
13
( 12) " Kuzhikan 'lm " means and includes a transfer by a landlord to another (called the ' kuzh1kanamdar ') of garden lands or of other lands or of both, w1th the fruit-bearing trees, if any, standing thereon at the time of the transfer, for the enjoyment of those trees and for the purpose of plantmg such frmt-bearing trees thereon; (I 3) "Landlord " means a person under whom a tenant holds and to whom he IS hable to pay rent. ;
( 14) " Licensee ,. means any person who is m occupatiOn of any nilam belonging to another and who, under any local custom or usage or under an agreement, cultivates that mlam w1th paddy for a fixed remuneratiOn and w11h the nsk of cultivatiOn, but does not mclude a person who so cultivates the mlam of another merely as an agent or servant.
Explallatwn.-Notwithstanding anything in the Indian Evidence Act, 1872 (Central Act I of 1872) or many other law for the time bemg in force, a person, though he is described as an agent or servant in a document evidencing the contract for the cultivatiOn of any mlam, may plead, adduce evidence and prove that he IS a licensee, ( 15) "Malabar" means the Malabar district referred to in sub-section (2) of section 5 of the States Reorganisation Act, 1956 (Central Act 37 of 1956);
(16) "michavaram" means whatever is agreed by a kanam- dar to be paid penodically as residual rent, m money or in kmd or m both to, 01 on behalf of, the landlord, but does not include customary dues;
( 17) "mulgeni " means a tenancy in perpetuity at a fixed invariable rent created 111 favour of a person called the mulgemdar; ( 18) " nil am " means land adapted for the cultivatiOn of paddy;
( 19) "odacharthu '' mt"ans an agreement for cuttmg bamboos m Malabar,
(20) " palhyal land " means land which is used ordinanly for raismg seedlings of paddy and mcludes land so used and known as Palh- manayal, Myal, Potta, Njal, NjattadJ or Banabettu,
(21) " paramba " means dry land on which perennial cultiva- tiOn exists, but shall not mclude a garden;
(22) " pnvate forests ,. means foresh, other than those belong- ing to the Government, to which the Madras PreservatiOn of Private Foresb Act, 1949 (Act XXVII of 1949), apphes, but excluding- (!) areas wh1ch are waste or thansu lands, not being enclaves within a wooded area,
(zz) areas which are gardens or parambas or are planted with Jack, mango, orange, cashew or such other fruit-beanng trees,
(m) areas which are nilams or are cultivated with any agn· cultural crop, and
(w) areas which are pnnc1pally planted w1th tea, coffee, rubber, cardamom or cmnamon;
'
14
(23) "punam or kumri cultivation '' means fugitive or inter- mittent cultivation of paddy on tharisu lands in Malabar;
(24) "punam or kumn cultiVator" means a person who has raised crops by punam or kumn cultivation 111 any year between 1953 and 1959 and, whet e there arc successive cult1vators in 1 espect of the same land, the cult1vator who raised crops last by such cultivation dunng the sa1d period;
(25) "rent" means whatever is lawfully payable in money or in kind or in both by a person perm1tted to have the use and occupat1on of any land to the person so pet mittmg, and includes m1chavaram, but does not include customary dues,
(26) (z) "tenant" means any person who has paid or has agreed to pay rent 01 other cons1deratwn, for Ius bemg allowed by another, to possess and to enjoy the land of the latter, and mcludes-
(a) an mtermed~ary;
(b) a verumpattomdar of any descnption;
(c) a kanamdar;
(d) a kanam-kuzlukanamdar;
(e) a kuzhikanamdar,
(f) a punam or kumri cultivator;
(g) a licensee in Kuttanad taluk;
(h) a varomdar,
(z) an odacharthudat or a person claimmg under him, who was actually cult1vatmg on the II th day of Apnl, 1957 and was contmuing to cultivate on the lOth day of December, 1962, the land or any portion of the land to wh1ch the odacharthu relates, in respect of the land or the portion of the land so cultivated;
(J) a mortgagee with possession of immovable property Situate in Cochin, where-
( z) the property compnsed m the mortgage cons1sts of agncultural lands, other than lands planted with 1 ubber, coffee, tea or cashew; and
( 11) the interest on the mortgage amount is less than 40 per cent of the total rent fixed 111 the mortgage document;
(k) a mortgagee with po~sesswn of immovable property situate m Cochin, where the mortgage was executed on or after the first day of Chingam, Jill, and the property comprised m the mortgage consists of agn- cultural lands, and such property was outstandmg w1th the mot tgagee or his predecessor-m-mterest on verumpattom Immediately prior to the mm tgage with possessiOn,
(!) the holder of a kudiyiruppu,
(m) a vechupakuthidar,
(n) the holde1 of a chalgcni lease,
I
w
~ l
15
(o) a mulgenidar;
(P) the holder of a va1dageni lease; and
(q) a person holding land situate in any part of the taluk of Hosdrug or Kasargod to wh1ch the Malabar Tenancy Act, 1929, does not extend, under a transac- tiOn descnbed m the document evidencing it as Bhogya, Ott1, Nattotti, Arwar, Ilhdarwar or Kritha- sartha lllidarwar, but not being a u~ufructuary mortgdge as defined in the Tramfer of Property Act, 1882 (Central Act 4 of 1882),
but shall not mclude a person holdmg laud under a transaction known as lrakk1panayam.
Explanation /.-Where m a document a person IS de~cnbed as a 'Sambalapattomdar', •Sambalachittudar' or •Coohpdttomdar' m respect of any paddy land s1tuate m the Palghat d1strict, he shall be presumed to be a tenant :
Provided that such presumptton shall stand rebutted 1f it is proved that the •Sambalapattomdar', 'Sambalach1ttudar' or •Cooh- pattomdar' has not undertaken any nsk of cultivation. Explanatzon II -For the purposes ofth1s sub-clause, any person who, on the lith day of Apnl, 1957, was contmuously in occupation of the land of another Situate m Malabar, for not less than two years, bona fzde believmg h1mself to be a tenant and contmued to be m occupa- tion of such land on the lOth day of December, 1962, shall be deemed to be a tenant.
Explanatzon Jll.-For the purposes of this sub-clause, 'holder of a chalgeni lease' means a lessee or sub-lessee of specific immovable property s1tuate in the taluk of Hosdrug or Kasargod in the d1stnct of Cannanore, who has cont1acted, either expressly or imphedly, to hold the same under a lease whether for a specified penod or not. Explanatzon IV.-For the purposes of this sub-clause,any per~on who, by virtue of the provtsJons of sectinn 6 of the Kerala Stay of Evict- JOn Proceedmgs Act, 1957, was entitled to cultivate any mlam after the lith day of April, 1957, and was cultJvatmg the mlam on the lOth day of December, 1962, shall be deemed to be a varomdar, notw1thstandmg the expiry of the term fixed under the varom arrangement. Explanatzon V.-For the purposes of th1s sub-clause, 'vaidageni lease' means a lease for a term of years ;
(n) "cult1vatmg tenant" means a tenant who actually cultivates the land compnsed m h1s holding. Explanattotl.-Where a tenant cultivates only a portion of the land compnsed in a holding, he shall be deemed to be the culttvatmg tenant in respect of that pbrt10n ;
(27) " tharisu '' means cultivable land wh1ch 1s not a mlam, ga1 den, para mba or palhyal land ;
(28) "varom" means an arrangement between the varomdar and the owner or other person m lawful possession of any mlam for the
7
~--
16
cultivation of paddy and sharing of the paddy produce, and includes the arrangements known as pathivarom, pankuvarom, or pankupattom ;
(29) ' varomdar " means a person who cultivates under a varom arrangement ;
(30) " vechupakuthy" means a transaction whereunder a landowner transfers the possessiOn of land to another (called the 'vechupakuthidar') With the following stipulations .-
(t) the vechupakuthidar shall improve the land by planting Withm a specified period ;
(!!) at the end of the penod so specified- ( a) the land shall be partitioned between the landowner and the vechupakuthidar in a specified proportion ;
(b) upon such partition, all the rights of either party over the portiOn of the land set apart for the other shall stand transferred to and vest in the other ; and
(m) during the period between the transfer of the land and the partitiOn thereof the vechupakuthidar shall pay to the landowner such rent as may be specified ;
(31) (z) "verumpattomdar" means a lessee or sub-lessee of immovable property, whether called verumpattomdar, or venpattomdar, who has expressly or Impliedly con- tracted to hold the same under a lease \'t'lth or Without security for rent, and includes a Thankuthukaran in the Palghat district, but does not mclude a kanamdar, kanam-kuzh1kanamdar, or kuzh1kanamdar ,
(u) "customary verumpattomdar" means any verum- pattomdar who, before the commencement of the Malabar Tenancy (Amendment) Act, 1951, was enti- tled, by the custom of the locality in which the land was situated, to possessiOn of the said land for a definite period of years, and for whose contmuance thereon after the termmation of that penod, for a further penod a renewal fee had to be pa1d to the landlord as an inci- dent of the tenure.
4. Extmptzons.-Nothing m this Act shall apply to-
(t) leases of land or of buildings f'r of both belonging to or vested m the Government of Kerala or the Government of any other State m Ind1a or the Government of India or a local authority or any other authonty exempted from the proviSions of this Act, m the public i11 terest, by the Government by not1ficat10n m the Gazette :
Prov1ded that, in respect of leases of kanduknshi lands, the provisions ol section 5 shall apply to su1ts or other procee c.lings for eviction by any landlord other than the Govocnment. Explanatton !.-" Lands belongmg to or vested m the Govern- ment of Kerala" shall, for the purposes of this clause, have the same meaning as " Government land " under sub-section (I) of section 2 of the Kerala Government Land Assignment Act, 1960, but leases over lands escheated to the Government shall not be deemed to be leases
...
I
I
I
I I
II
I
I
I
}7.:
-r
8
17
If land belonging to or vested in the Government if such leases sub- sisted at the time of the escheat and continued to be in force on the lOth day of December 1962.
Explanation II.- For the purposes of this clause, "kandukrishi land" means land covered by the Kandukrishi Proclamation, 1124, and includes kandukrishi pattom land and kandukrishi thanathu land; or
(zz) leases of bUildmgs mcluding a house, shop or warehouse, and the Site theieof, With the land, if any, appurtenant thereto. Explanatwn.-PermiSSion gtven to a kudiktdappukaran to occupy a hut shall not he deemed to be a lease of bmldmg for the pur· poses of this clause ; or
(m) leases of land or of buildings or of both specifically granted for industnal or commercial purposes ; or
(tv) tenancies of land or of bu1ldmgs or of both granted by the Administrator-General or the Official Trustee or an Official Receiver or officer appomted by a court under the provisiOns of any law or by any person holdmg under or denving title from any of the officer$ aforesaid , or
(v) tenancies in respect of land or of buildmgs or of both created by mortgagees in possessiOn or by persons derivmg title from such mortgagees :
Provided that nothmg in this clause shall apply to a cultivating tenant holdmg land m the taluk of Hosdi ug or Kasaragod m the distnct of Cannanore under a lease granted before the 15th day of February 1961, by a usufructuary mortgagee as defined m the Transfer of Property Act, 1882 (Central Act 4 of 1882) ; or ( vz) tenancies in respect of land or of buildings or ·of both created by persons holdmg only hfe interest or other limited interest in the land or in the buddmgs or Ill both.
Explanatzon.-For the purposes of this clause, a Sthanee or trustee or owner of any temple, mosque, church or other place of pubhc religious wmship or of any other pubhc rehg10us or chantable mstitu- twn or endowment shall not be deemed to be a peiwn having only life mterest or other limited mterest in ownership :
Provided that the provisions of sectiOn 5 shall apply to tenan- cies fallmg under clauses (v) and (m) so long as the mortgage, or, as the case may be, the l1fc interest or othei limited mterest subs1sts ; or (vzz) leases of pnvate forests :
Provided that nothmg in clauses (z) to (vzz) shall affect the rights of persons who were entitled to fixity of tenure under the Malabar Tenanc}' Act, I 929 (Act XIV of I 930) or under the Cochin Verum- pattomdars Act, VII I of I I I 8 or section 7 of the Hmdu SuccessiOn Act, 1956 (Central Act 30 of 1956); or
( vm) lands transferred for fellmg trees ; or
(zx) any transaction relating only to the usufruct of trees. 3/5-2
18
5. Stay of evictzon of tenants and kudikzdappukars.-Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in any other law for the time bemg in force, or in any custom, usage or contract, or m any decree or order of court, with effect on and from the commencement of this Act, no suit or other proceedings for eviction of a tenant from his holding or of a kudikidappukaran from his kudikidappu shall lie in any court, and all suits, proceedmgs 111 execution of decrees or orders and other pro- ceeding~ pendmg in the courts at the commencement of this Act for such evict1on shall be stayed.
6. Stay of suzts and procudzngs for recovery of anears of renl.- ( I) Notwithstandmg anything to the contrary contained m any other I aw for the t1me being in force, or 111 any costom, usage or contract, or in any decree or order of court, but subject to the prov1S1om of this section, no suit or other proceedings for the 1 ecovery of arrears of rent or customary dues which accrued due 01 accrues due from a tenant on or before the 31st day of December 1963, shall he in any court after the commencement of th1s Act, and all smts, proceedings 111 execution of decrees or orders and other proceedings pendmg m the com ts at such commencement for recovery of arrears of such rent or customary dues shall be stayed.
(2) Notw1thstandmg anything contained in sub-section (I) a tenant shall,-
(1) where arrears, of rent which accrued due before the II th day of April, 1957, are outstandmg, pay to the landlord or deposit in court fm payment to the landlord, on or before the 28th day of February 1963 an amount equal to one year's rent fixed under the cont1 act of tenancy or, where fair rent has been fixed in respect of the holding under any law in force immediately before the 15th day of February 1961, such fair rent for one year:
Provided that where such arrears of rent are less than the contract rent or such fa1r rent for one year, the amount to be pa1d or deposited shall be only the actual rent in arrears. Explanation.-Where arrears, of rent for more than one year a. ccrued before the II th day of April 195 7, are outstanding, the rent to be paid or depos1ted under th1s clause shall be the rent for the last year for which arrears are so outstanding ;
(!1) where arrears, of rent wh1ch accrued due on or after. the lith day of Apnl, 1957 and before the 15th day of February, 1961, arc outstanding, pay to the landlord 01 depos1t 111 court for payment to the landlord, an amount equal to 75 per cent of the 1ent for that period calculated at the rate fixed under the contract of tenancy or, where fair rent has been fixed m respect of the holdmg under any law m force unmediately before the 15th day of February, 1961, at the rate of such fa1r rent, in two equal mstalments as shown below :-
(a) the first mstalment consisting of one-half of the amount aforesaid shall be paid or depos1ted on or before the 28th day of February, 1963, and
II
j
:(
j:l'
I
' - l . l ,{I] 1 f
' I
I i
' ' '
I
~
19
(b) the second instalment consisting of the other half of the amount shall be paid or deposited on or before the 15th day of August, 1963;
(m) where arrears, of rent which accrued due on or after the 15th day of February, 1961 and before the 31st day of March, 1962, are outstanding, pay to the landlord or depo~it in court for payment to the landlord, an amount equal to 75 pe1 cent of the rent for that period calculated at the rate fixed under the contlact of tenan- cy or, where fatr rent has been fixed in respect of the holdmg under any law in force immediately before the 15th day of February, 1961, at the rate of such fair rent, on or before the 31st day of March, 1963;
(w) where arrears, of rent which accrued due or accrues due on or after tht' 1st day of April, 1962 and uefme the 31st day of Ma1ch, 1963, are or become outstan- ding, pay to the landlord or deposit m court for pay- ment to the landlord, an amount equal to 75 per cent of the rent for that period c:J.Iculated at the rate fixed under the contract of tenancy or, where fair rent has been fixed in respect of the holdmg under any law in force nnmcdiat('ly before the 15th day of February, 1961, at the rate of such fair rent, on or before the 30th day of Sept('mbcr, 1963,
(v) where arrears, of rent which accrues due on or after the 1st day of April, 1963, become outstanding, pay to the landlord or depostt m court for payment to the landlord, an amount equal to /5 per cent of such arrears of rent calculated at the rate fixed under the contract of tenan- cy or, where fair rent has been fixed in respect of the holding under any law m force immedtately before the 15th day of February, 1961, at the rate of such fair rent, within one month from the date on which such rent becomes payable :
Provided that where a tenant has pa1d after the 15th day of February, 1961, any amount towards the arrears of rent referred to in clause (t), clause (zz), clause (m) or clause (tv), such amount shall be deducted from the amount to be paid or deposited under that cla~e, and It shall be ~uffictent if the tenant pays or deposits the balance, if any, after such deduct1on.
ExplanRtwn I.-vVhere any amount has been paid after the 15th day of Feb1 uary, 1961, towards the arrears of rent referred to m clause (zz), such amount shall be deducted from the amount to be paid or deposited in the first instalment and where the amount so paid exceeds the amount to be paid or depos1ted m the first instalment, such excess shall be deducted from the amount to be patd or deposited 111 the second instalment.
Explanation II.-For the purposes of this sub-section, "rent fixed under the contract of tenancy" shall, in the case of lands held under a varom arrangement, mean the average of the value of the 3f5-2a
20
share of the landlord in the produce for the three years immediately preceding the commencement of tillS Act or, where a varomdar was not cultivating the land continuously for the said penod of three years, the value of the share of the landlord for the year in which the varom- dar cultivated the land last immediately before the commencement of this Act.
(3) Notice of any deposit made under sub-section (2) shall be ~ given to the landlord by the court, and the co~t of the notice shall be paid by the tenant so depositing the rent, and the landlord shall be at hbe1 ty to withdraw such amount under the orders of the court.
(4) The deposit referred tom sub-section (2) shall be made in the cou1 t having jurisdiction under the Code of C1vii Procedure, 1908, to entertain a smt for the possession of the holdmg or part thereof to which the arrears relate.
(5) Where the rent is payable in kind, the amount to be paid or deposited under sub-section (2) shall, unless the money value of the commodity is specified m the document evidencing the contt act of tenancy, be computed at the market rate of the com mod1ty preva!lmg on the date on wluch the rent became payable under the contract of tenancy or under any custom or usage.
(6) Where any amount deposited under sub-section (2) IS found to be less than the amount to be deposited under that sub-section com- puted m the manner specified in sub-sectiOn (5) due to bana fide error in the computation, the court may allow the person who has deposited the amount reasonable time for depositing the balance amount, and where the balance amount is deposited w1thm the time so allowed. the person who has so deposited shall be deemed to have deposited the amount w1thm the time allowed under sub-section (2).
(7) Where a tenant fails to make any payment or deposit as required under sub-section (2), within the pe1 iod specified therefor in that sub-sectiOn, the proviswns of sub-sectiOn (I) shall cease to apply to smts and other proceedmg~ for recovery of arrears of rent due from him.
7. Rent payable by Kudzkidappukaran.-AII an ears of rent, if any, payable by a Kud1ktdappul..aran on the 15th day of February, 1961, w~ether the same be payable under any law, custom or contract or unaer a decree or order of court, shall be deemed to be d1schatged, 1f he pays one year's rent or the actual amount 111 arrca1s, whichever is less. On and after the sa1d date, notwithstandmg any contract, dec1 ee or order of cou1 t a kud1ktdappukaran shall not be required to pay more than SIX rupees yearly as rent 111 respect ofh1s kud~k.dappu wh1ch IS not ~1tuated Withm the hm1ts of the Corporation of Trivand1 urn or the Corporation of Cahcut or of any mumc•pallty constituted 01 deemed to be constituted under the Kerala Mumctpahties Act, 1960 :
Provided that a kudikidappukaran who was not liable to pay any rent in respect of his kudik1dappu Jmmedtately before the 15th day of february, 1961, shall not be hablc to pay any rent, nor shall a kud1kidappukaran be liable to pay any rent in excess of that which he was paymg before that date.
I
I
I
:
i
1
I
I
)
I
'~ !fl
:
I
I
l i
I
I
j ! \
:J
21
8. Interest 011 arrears of rent.-For the purposes of sections 6 anJ 7, mtct est on arears of rent shall be calculated at the rate of ~1x per cent pc1 annum, or at the contract rate, whtchever ts less.
9. Rcmzsswn of rent.-( 1) Where there has been a damage to, or a failure of, ctops owing to causes beyond the contzol of the tenant in any holding, the tenant shall be entitled to a remission of the rent pay- able by him in proportion to the extent of such damage or failure.
(2) The District Collector or any other officer authorised by the Government, by notification in the Gazette, in thts behalf, shall, on au application to him by the tenant, determine the extent of damage to, or failure of, crops under sub-sectton (I) and order such remtssion of rent as appears to hun just and proper. The decision of the Collector or such other officer ~hall be final, and the tenant ~hall be entitled to get the benefit of the remisswn so ordered.
(3) An appltcatwn for remission of rent on any of the grounds spectf1ed in su b-sectton (I) filed by a tenant on 01 after the 15th day of February, 1961, shall be deemed to have been filed under this section as if-
(z) this sectiOn and sect10n 13 had come mto f01 ce on the 15th day of February, 1961 ,
(zz) the rules made or purported to have been made under the Kerala Agrarian Relattons Act, 1960, in so far as they relate to remission of tent, were issued under thts Act, and
(m) all notifications and orders tssued or made under the aforesaid rules were issued or made under the rules so deemed to have been made under this Act, and accordingly any order passed on any such application shall be deemed to have been made under thi~ section. -
10. Rtght lo prove real nature of transaction.-Notwithstandmg any- thing in the Indian Evidence Act, 1872 (Central Act I of 1872), or in any other law for the time bemg m force, any person mterested 111 any land Situate m Malabar may plead, adduce evidence and prove that a transactiOn purporting to be a mortgage, ott1, karipanayam, panayam or Nerpanayam of that land 1s not in fact such a transaction but a trans- action by way of kanam, kanam-kuzhikanam, kuzh1kanam, verumpat- tom or other lease.
11. Pnorzty of claim for arrears of rcnt.-Arrears of rent due to the landlord, together wtth mterest thereon, shall be a charge on the interest of the tenant in the holdmg and shall, subject to the pt iority of the nghts of the Government and any local authonty for arrears of tax, cess or other dues, be a first charge on such interest of the tenant.
12. Lzmltatton.-In computing the period of hm1tat10n for the institution of suits or proceedmgs prolubited or stayed under this Act, the time during which such suits or proceedmgs were prolubited or stayed under this Act and under any of the following enactments, namely
(z) the Kerala Stay of Eviction Proceedings Act, 1957 (I of 1957) ;
22
(zz) the KeralaAgra1ian Relations Act, 1960 (4of 1961);
(m) the Kerala Ryotwari Tenants and Kudikidappuka•s Pro- tectiOn Act, 1962 (18 of 1962) ; and
(zv) the Kerala Tenants and Kud1k1dappukars ProtectiOn Ordi- nance, 1962 (01 dmance No. 8 of 1962),
shall be excluded.
13. Powe1 to mal.,e 1Ules.-( I) The Government may, by notifica- tion in the Gazette, make rules for the purpose of carrymg out the purpose~ of tlus Act.
(2) Every rule made under this Act shall be laid as soon as may be aftt"r it Is made, bef01 e the Legislative As~embly while it is m session for a total penod of fourteen days wh1ch may be compnscd 111 one SCSS1011 or in tWO SUCCeSSIVe SeSSIOllS, and If, before the expiry of the sessiOn 111 wh1ch 1t 1s so la1d or the sesswn Immediately followmg, the Legislative Assembly agrees that the rules should be e1ther mod1fied or annulled, t!.e rule shall the1eafte1 have efTect only m ~uch mod1fied fm m or be of no efTect, as the case may be ; so however lhat any such modificatiOn or annulment shall be without pejud1ce to the validity of anythmg previOusly done under that rule.
14. Act to overrzde other laws, etc.-The prov1sions of this Act shall have effect notwJthstandmg anything 111 any other law or any cmtom or usage or m any contract, express or implied, inconsistent with the pro- visions of tlus Act.
15. Repeat and saumg.-( I) The Kerala Tenants and Kudik•dap- pukJ.t s Protection Ordmance, 1962 (Ordmance No. 8 of 1962), IS here- by repealed.
(2) Notwithstanding such repeal, anythmg done or any action taken under the sa1d Ordinance shall be deemed to have been done or taken under tlus Act, as if this Act had commenced on the I Oth day of December, 1962.
I
' ' .
1
\