In Brief
A tenant challenged a High Court decision dismissing his writ petition against an order denying him deemed purchaser status under the Bombay Tenancy and Agricultural Lands Act, 1948. The landlord, a minor at the reference date, applied for possession of the tenanted land after attaining majority, but the application was rejected at multiple levels. The Supreme Court held that when a landlord's application for possession is rejected, the tenant automatically acquires deemed purchaser status under Section 32, without needing to give notice under Section 32F(1A). The Court distinguished between two mutually exclusive situations: automatic deemed purchase (when the landlord's application fails) and optional purchase requiring notice (when the minor landlord takes no action). The appeal was allowed and the tenant's deemed purchaser status was upheld.
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