Rent or No Rent in this Lockdown?

Rent or No Rent in this Lockdown? People are confused as to what should they do about the rent of their premises in this lockdown and school/colleges demanding fees. With the help of this blog post, I try to give an idea as to what can be done to resolve these issues. 

Introduction:-

Novel Coronavirus which is a newly found species of the virus has constantly been on the headlines of all the news channels and newspapers from the very first day of its inception. Many lives are lost due to it and many people are affected by it as of now. Economies have slowed down due to it.

COVID-19 since the very beginning has given birth to many problems,

not just the Indian Economy but the whole world has taken a huge blow due to it.

Due to this pandemic, we have resulted in a nationwide lockdown since 23rd March 2020 and since then we have collectively faced many problems, the problem of rent and eviction of tenants amidst the lockdown is the new evil given birth by the infamous COVID-19.

Problem:-

All the tenants ( a person who rents out a property from the owner of that property for a limited period ) usually paid the rent to the landlord ( owner of a property ) every month as per the mutually decided date. But after the lockdown, all economic activities have come to a standstill irrespective of some. Which has resulted in non-payment of rent and eviction of tenants.

Due to these circumstances, people are not able to pay timely rent to their respective landlord(s). 

A PIL ( Public Interest Litigation ) was filed in the Supreme of India and the PIL came for adjudication before the Constitutional bench comprising of Hon'ble Mr. Justice Ashok Bhushan,  Hon'ble Mr. Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Hon'ble Mr. Justice B.R. Gavai, the proceedings were convened through video conferencing.

This PIL was filed before the Hon'ble Court so that the Court would order the implementation of the order of Home Ministry of India dated 29th March 2020 to restrain the landlords from seeking rent and evicting their tenants. The petition was filed to raise concerns about the increasing demand for rent by the landlords from their tenants in this lockdown and to also extend the original order of Home Ministry which was only for a month.

Another problem that is being faced by the general public other than the issue of rent is colleges and schools demanding fees. The schools are demanding the fees as per the schedule decided by them even in this pandemic. People aren't able to pay the rent and fees due to the lockdown and the major focus of expenditure among everyone is on the groceries and basic needs of but some shopkeepers are overcharging and hoarding these items. I have addressed this issue in my previous blog post and have also provided with what can be done. 

Although the Government has directed everyone not to deduct the salaries of their employees, particularly the private sector undertakings have been deducting the salaries of their employees, some people are not getting any salaries and some people are also being fired from their respective jobs. These steps have been taken by the companies in order to face the financial crisis. 

Hon'ble Supreme Court's Order:-

The PIL filed in the Supreme Court was rejected regarding this issue, thereby meaning that the payment of rent can not be refused and is mandatory for the tenants to pay the rent for the property that has been occupied by them. 

The Hon'ble Supreme Court stated that the source of income for many people is by renting out their properties and the pandemic has hit everyone including them so the rent can not be waived off and the tenants are bound to pay the money.

Hon'ble Delhi High Court's Judgement regarding school/fees:-

The Hon'ble High Court stated that the school/colleges can charge tuition fees amidst this lockdown as the teachers and schools are discharging their duties by teaching the students through video conferencing, as the schools also have certain obligations to discharge the main one being paying salaries to the teachers. 

What can be done:-

• In my opinion, what can be done is the landlord ( the owner of the property ) can talk to their tenants and can ask that if they can afford to pay the rent. If they cant do so the landlord can reduce the amount of rent for the present month and then can take the remaining amount after everything comes back to normal. 

• A landlord if he or she feels like after ensuring the condition of their tenant(s) may not take the rent for this month and can take the rent which is due after everything comes back to normal. It is the landlord's discretion.

• Do keep some legally enforceable proof of what is being mutually agreed upon.

• As far as the schools and colleges are concerned Hon'ble Delhi High Court ordered that they are entitled to charge tuition fees as long as they are discharging their duties but the schools and colleges cannot ask for any other fees other than the tuition fees. 

Conclusion:-

Every person is affected by the impact of COVID-19 resultant lockdown in one way or the other mainly due to the frustration of the economic activities.

I have written this blog post to provide a sense of clarity on the issue of rent and school/college fees in the lockdown so that people can avoid unnecessary litigation. I hope this blog post helped you in one way or the other.

Whoever thinks a person cant change the world, never ate an undercooked bat!