New Delhi, September 11: In a ruling that could impact long-standing rental disputes across India, the Supreme Court on Thursday allowed landlady Jyoti Sharma’s appeal and ordered the eviction of tenants occupying her family’s shop in Indore. The bench of Justices J.K. Maheshwari and K. Vinod Chandran set aside earlier findings of three lower courts, calling them “perverse” and based on “mere surmises and conjectures.”
Background
The conflict dates back to 1953 when the shop was first rented to the father of the present tenants. After landlord Ramji Das died in 1999, he left the shop to his daughter-in-law Jyoti Sharma through a registered will. Sharma sought eviction claiming the space was needed to expand her family’s sweets business and also demanded unpaid rent from January 2000. The tenants, however, questioned Ramji Das’s ownership and alleged the will was fraudulent.
Over two decades, the case went through a legal maze—dismissed by the trial court, remanded by the first appellate court, and rejected again by the High Court. Each time, Sharma’s claim was struck down.
The Supreme Court carefully revisited the evidence. “It is trite that in a suit for eviction, the proof of ownership is not to be strictly looked at as in a suit for declaration of title,” the bench observed.
The judges noted that the tenants and their predecessors had been paying rent to Ramji Das since 1953 and could not now deny his ownership. They also took into account a 2018 probate order validating the will, which the High Court had earlier refused to admit. “The grounds on which the will was suspected by the trial court cannot be upheld,” the bench said.
On the question of need, the Court highlighted that Sharma’s family was already running a sweets and savouries shop next door and her sons had joined the business. “The bona fide need hence stands established,” the judges concluded.
Decision
Setting aside the rulings of the trial court, the appellate court, and the High Court, the Supreme Court decreed eviction of the tenants. It directed them to pay rent arrears from January 2000 until they vacate the premises. Considering the long tenancy, the Court allowed the tenants six months to hand over possession, provided they file an undertaking within two weeks to pay dues within a month. Failure to do so will enable Jyoti Sharma to seek immediate eviction.
Case Name: Jyoti Sharma vs. Vishnu Goyal & Another
Judgment Date: 11 September 2025
