Punjab Public Premises and Land (Eviction and Rent Recovery) Act, 1973
No: 31 Dated: Jul, 06 1973
THE PUNJAB PUBLIC PEMISES AND LAND (EVICTION AND RENT RECOVERY) ACT, 1973
(PUNJAB ACT 31 OF 1973)
An Act to provide for the eviction of unauthorised occupants from public premises and for certain incidental matters.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Punjab in the Twenty-fourth Year of the Republic of India as follows :-
1. Short title, extent and commencement. - (1) This Act may be called the Punjab Public Premises and Land (Eviction and Rent Recovery) Act, 1973.
(2) It extends to the whole of the State of Punjab.
(3) It shall be deemed to have come into force on the 27th day of November, 1959 except sections 11, 18 and 19 which shall come into force at once.
2. Definitions. - In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires :-
(a) "Collector" means the Collector of the district and includes any other officer appointed by the State Government for performing the functions of the Collector under this Act;
(b) "corporate authority" means -
(i) any local authority referred to in sub-clause (i), or
(ii) any company or Corporation referred to in sub-clauses (ii) and (iii); of clause (e) of this section;
(c) "estate" has the meaning assigned to it in the Punjab Land Revenue Act, 1887;
(d) "premises" means any land, whether used for agricultural or non- agricultural purposes, or any building or part of a building and includes :-
(i) the garden, grounds and out-house, if any, appertaining to such building; or part of a building; and
(ii) any fittings affixed to such building or part of a building for the more beneficial enjoyment thereof;
(e) "public premises" means any premises belonging to, or taken on lease or requisitioned by, or on behalf of, the State Government and includes any premises belonging to, or taken on lease by, or on behalf of -
(i) any Municipal Committee, Notified Area Committee, Zila Parishad, Panchayat Samiti, Panchayat or Improvement Trust;
(ii) any company as defined in section 3 of the Companies Act, 1956 (1 of 1956), in which not less than fifty one per cent of the paid-up share capital is held by the State Government; and
(iii) any Corporation [not being a company as defined in section 3 of the Companies Act, 1956 (1 of 1956), or a local authority] established by or under a Central Act as defined in clause (7) of section 3 of the General Clauses Act, 1897, or a Punjab Act and owned or controlled by the State Government;
(f) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under this Act;
(g) "rent" in relation to any public premises, means the consideration payable periodically for the authorised occupation of the premises and includes -
(i) any charge for electricity, water or any other services in connection with the occupation of the premises;
(ii) any tax (by whatever name called) payable in respect of the premises;
where such charge or tax is payable by the State Government or the corporate authority.
3. Unauthorised occupation of public premises. - For the purposes of this Act, a person shall be deemed to be in unauthorised occupation of any public premises -
(a) where he has, whether before or after the commencement of this Act entered into possession thereof otherwise than under and in pursuance of any allotment, lease or grant; or
(b) where he, being an allottee, lessee or grantee, has, by reason of the determination or cancellation of his allotment, lease or grant in accordance with the terms in that behalf therein contained, ceased, whether before or after the commencement of this Act, to be entitled to occupy or hold such public premises; or
(c) where any person authorised to occupy any public premises has, whether before or after the commencement of this Act -
(i) sub-let, in contravention of the terms of allotment, lease or grant, without the permission of the State Government or of any other authority competent to permit such sub-letting, the whole or any part of such public premises, or
(ii) otherwise acted in contravention of any of the terms, express or implied under which he is authorised to occupy such public premises.
Explanation. - For the purpose of clauses (a), a person shall not merely by reason of the fact that he has paid any rent by deemed to have entered into possession as allottee, lessee or grantee.