On Monday, The Assam government brought a Bill to establish a Rent Authority to regulate renting of premises in a bid to protect the interests of both landlords and tenants and to provide a speedy dispute resolution mechanism.
The Assam Tenancy Bill, 2021, which was introduced in the House by Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pijush Hazarika on behalf of the Housing and Urban Development Minister Ashok Singhal, seeks to ensure that there will be no artificial cap in fixing of rent of a premise.
The rent shall be market-driven and as determined by a mutual agreement between the tenant and the landlord.
The agreement between the landlord and the tenant shall be the main premise of the Assam Tenancy Bill, 2021, which shall be binding on both the landlord and the tenant, the statement of Objects and Reasons of the Bill said.
The procedure for redressing landlord-tenant disputes has been simplified and made faster by setting up a Rent Authority, Rent Court, and Rent Appellate at the district level through the Bill.
The eviction of tenants in cases of non-payment of rent or non-fulfillment of conditions of agreement has also been simplified to eliminate the fear of the landlord losing rights to his property.
The Bill also clearly specifies the duties and obligations of each party on the maintenance and upkeep of the premises.
The provisions of the Bill will, however, not apply to certain premises, including those owned or promoted by the government, religious or charitable organizations, and Waqf authorities.
The new Bill has been formulated on the basis of a Model Tenancy Act which was approved by the Union Cabinet on June 2, 2021, for adoption across all states and Union Territories.
With the enactment of this new Bill, the Assam Urban Areas Rent Control Act, 1972, will stand repealed. There will be no financial burden on the state exchequer on account of the Bill. PTI SSG JRC JRC
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