It is pretty common in Pakistan for a landlord to experience resistance from tenants from vacating the premises, no matter how good you are in building a good relationship with your tenant.
Eviction of tenants in Pakistan as a matter of procedure can be on different grounds. Some of the grounds on which Eviction petitions are filed by the landlord in the court are as follow:
- Default in Payment of Rent
- Default in payment of utility
- Cause damage to property
- Tenant has sublet the premise to third party without approval and permission of tenant
- Causing nuisance for neighbors
- Landlord required premise for personal use.
- Violation of other terms and conditions of the agreement where Agreement is in writing
Majorly the eviction petitions are filed for default by a tenant in payment of rent to the landlord. Tenancy Laws in Pakistan are the domain of provinces. This means that every province has its own Tenancy Law. In Punjab Government has recently introduced the Punjab Rented Premises Act 2009 which covers all tenancy relationships and disputes except the relationship or dispute of properties situated in Cantonment, in which case the provision of Cantonment Rent Restriction Act, 1963 comes to play.
Tenancy Law of Punjab requires that there must be a written tenancy agreement between Landlord and Tenant which act as a driving force to regulate the dispute, right and obligations of each party. Despite this many tenancy relationships are based on a verbal agreement and in times of dispute, the landlord is left with no choice but to approach the court for eviction of the tenant through the process of the court. In the case of verbal agreement, chances are pretty high that the tenant will not only default in payment of rent but also refuse to vacate the premises. It is strongly advised that a comprehensive Tenancy Agreement be executed with Tenant which spells out clear rights and obligations of each party and eventualities in which Landlord could proceed to evict Tenant through the process of the court.
Under the Tenancy law of Punjab, eviction of the tenant can be through mutual consent or the process of the court. In case of eviction of tenant through process of court, Landlord will have to first establish that there exists tenancy agreement and if an agreement is verbal, there is every likelihood that tenant will contest the eviction on the ground that he is not tenant rather he has been in the possession of demised premise through some verbal agreement of sale or perhaps the premise has been offered to his as gifts etc. The landlord will have to provide evidence to establish that premise had been handed over to the tenant on a rent basis which may benefit the tenant to gain more and more time.
Written Notice In Case Of Dispute
In case if there arises a dispute between landlord and tenant, a landlord is mandatory required to serve written notice on the tenant pointing out the default committed by the Tenant or Agreement has expired and the landlord wants the premise vacated. If a tenant fails to comply, the Landlord can proceed to file an Eviction or seek recovery of rent and other defaulted amounts which the landlord under the Tenancy Agreement is entitled to receive from the Tenant.
Procedure For Eviction Of Tenant
If the Tenant has failed to evict the premise through amicable means, Tenant, Landlord has the right to file Eviction Petition with Rent Controller. To file an Eviction Petition, it recommended engaging an expert lawyer, who is expertise in the tenancy laws. Expert tenancy lawyer after considering the facts of your case will prepare a draft and share it with you for approval. Once you have signed the petition, he will file the same on your behalf with Rent Controller and get a hearing date for notices to another side.
Documents Required For Filing Eviction Petition
Following are the documents required to proceed and file eviction petitioner before the Rent Controller:
- CNIC copy of Landlord
- CNIC copy of Tenant
- Verification Certificate of Tenant from Police Station
- Registered Tenancy Agreement duly signed by Tenant and Landlord
- Other documents a may be necessary for adjudication of matter
Registered Tenancy Agreement
As mentioned earlier Tenancy Agreement must be in writing signed on a non-judicial stamp paper of PKR 1200/- (Rupee Twelve Hundred). Tenancy law of Punjab requires that the Tenancy Agreement must be registered with the relevant Sub-Registrar office. If your tenancy agreement is not registered, you can still proceed to file an Eviction Petition with Rent Controller, however, the landlord will be required to pay a 10% penalty payable on the Annual Gross Value of Rent payment.
To handle all of this you need the best law firm in Pakistan that has extensive experience in handling Tenancy disputes on behalf of clients. Tenancy Lawyers can assist you in evicting the tenant from your premises in a smooth and time-efficient manner. In most cases, tenancy lawyers have successfully obtained the eviction orders from the Rent controller within 2-3 months. All you need to do is call some expert tenancy lawyers and they shall get your property vacated in no time.