Section 15 of the Delhi Rent Control Act, 1958: Payment of Rent and Protection Against Eviction
Section 15 regulates payment or deposit of rent while an eviction proceeding is pending before the Rent Controller. It is especially important where eviction is claimed for non-payment of rent under Section 14(1)(a).
What Section 15 does
In practical terms, Section 15 enables the Controller to require rent to be paid to the landlord or deposited with the Controller during an eviction case. It also addresses disputes over the amount of rent and the person entitled to receive it. Compliance with the statutory payment or deposit requirement can protect a tenant from an eviction order based on default in payment of rent, subject to the Act.
Section 15 explained subsection by subsection
Section 15(1)
In an eviction proceeding based on non-payment of rent under Section 14(1)(a), after hearing the parties, the Controller directs the tenant to pay the landlord or deposit with the Controller, within one month of the order, the legally recoverable arrears calculated at the last-paid rate, including rent up to the end of the month preceding payment or deposit. The tenant must thereafter continue to pay or deposit an equivalent amount month by month by the fifteenth day of each succeeding month.
Section 15(2)
Where eviction is sought on a ground other than Section 14(1)(a) and the tenant contests the eviction claim, the landlord may apply at any stage for an order requiring payment of legally recoverable rent. After hearing the parties, the Controller may make an order in accordance with Section 15(1).
Section 15(3)
If there is a dispute about the amount of rent payable in a proceeding under Section 15(1) or 15(2), the Controller is to fix interim rent within fifteen days of the first hearing. That interim amount is paid or deposited until standard rent is fixed. Any arrears recalculated on the basis of standard rent are then payable or depositable within one month of fixation, or within such further time as the Controller allows.
Section 15(4)
If there is a dispute about the person or persons entitled to receive rent, the Controller may direct deposit of the amount due under Section 15(1), 15(2) or 15(3). No person may withdraw the deposit until the Controller decides the dispute and orders payment.
Section 15(5)
If the Controller is satisfied that a dispute about the person entitled to rent was raised for false or frivolous reasons, the Controller may strike out the tenant's defence against eviction and continue the hearing.
Section 15(6)
If the tenant makes the payment or deposit required by Section 15(1) or 15(3), no possession order is to be made on the ground of default in payment of rent. The Controller may, however, award appropriate costs to the landlord.
Section 15(7)
If the tenant fails to make the payment or deposit required by Section 15, the Controller may strike out the defence against eviction and proceed with the eviction application.
Meaning of important expressions
Controller: Under Section 2(b), a Controller means a Controller appointed under Section 35(1) and includes an Additional Controller appointed under Section 35(2).
Landlord: Section 2(e) broadly covers a person receiving or entitled to receive rent, whether on his own account or for another person, and a person who would receive or be entitled to receive rent if the premises were let to a tenant.
Premises: Section 2(i) defines premises in relation to a building or part of a building let or intended to be let separately for residence, commercial use or another purpose, subject to the full statutory definition.
Relationship with Section 14(1)(a)
Section 14 contains the statutory protection against eviction and the grounds on which recovery of possession may be sought. Section 15(1) specifically applies to proceedings based on the rent-default ground in Section 14(1)(a). Section 15(6) provides the important consequence of compliance: where the tenant makes the payment or deposit required by Section 15(1) or 15(3), an order for recovery of possession is not to be made on the ground of default in payment of rent, although costs may be awarded.
Failure to comply with a Section 15 order
Section 15(7) states that if the tenant fails to make the payment or deposit required by Section 15, the Controller may order the defence against eviction to be struck out and proceed with the hearing. The statutory word is may; the consequence therefore arises through an order of the Controller under the provision rather than automatically from the text of Section 15 itself.
Official text and verification
For the authoritative statutory text, amendments and applicability, readers should verify the current version of the Delhi Rent Control Act, 1958 on the official India Code portal before relying on this explanatory article.
This page provides general legal information and is not a substitute for advice on the facts of a particular tenancy or proceeding.