In Brief
A landlord sued to evict his tenant for non-payment of rent under Section 13(1)(a) of the Rajasthan Premises (Control of Rent and Eviction) Act, 1950. The trial court passed an eviction decree without determining the provisional rent as mandated by Section 13(3). The High Court remanded the case, holding that Section 13(3) was mandatory. The Supreme Court upheld the High Court, ruling that the word 'shall' in Section 13(3) creates a binding obligation on courts to determine provisional rent within three months of the written statement and before framing issues, regardless of whether the tenant appears ex parte. Without such determination, the tenant loses his statutory right to deposit rent and avoid eviction.
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