Powers of Rent Tribunal and Appellate Rent Tribunal

32.

1. (1) The Rent Tribunal and the Appellate Rent Tribunal for the purpose of discharging their functions under this Act, shall have the same powers as are vested in a civil court under the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (No.5 of 1908) for the purposes of,
   • (a) summoning and enforcing the attendance of any person and examining him on oath;
   • (b) requiring the discovery and production of documents;
   • (c) issuing commissions for examination of the witnesses or documents;
   • (d) issuing commission for local investigation;
   • (e) receiving evidence on affidavits ;
   • (f) dismissing an application or appeal for default or deciding it ex-parte;
   • (g) setting aside any order of dismissal of any application or appeal for default or any other order passed by it ex-parte;
   • (h) execution of its order and decisions under this Act without reference to any civil court;
     • (i) reviewing its orders and decisions;
   • (j) any other matter which may be prescribed.
2. (2) Any proceeding before the Rent Tribunal or Appellate Rent Tribunal shall be deemed to be a judicial proceeding within the meaning of sections 193 and 228, and for the purpose of section 196, of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 (No. 45 of 1860) and the Rent Tribunal shall be deemed to be a civil court for the purposes of section 195 and Chapter XXVI of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (No.2 of 1974).
3. (3) For the purpose of holding any inquiry or discharging any duty under this Act, the Rent Tribunal may,
   • (a) after giving not less than twenty-four hours notice in writing, enter and inspect or authorise any officer, subordinate to him, to enter and inspect, any premises at any time between sunrise and sunset;
   • (b) by written order, require any person to produce for his inspection such books or documents relevant to the inquiry, at such time and at such place as may be specified in the order.
4. (4) The Rent Tribunal may, if he thinks fit, appoint one or more persons having special knowledge of the matter under consideration as an assessor or valuer to advise him in the proceeding before him.
5. (5) Any clerical or arithmetical mistake in any order passed by the Rent Tribunal or any other error arising out of any accidental omission may, at any time, be corrected by the Rent Tribunal on an application received by him in this behalf from any of the parties or otherwise.
6. (6) The Rent Tribunal may exercise the powers of a Judicial Magistrate First Class for the recovery of the fine under the provisions of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (No. 2 of 1974) and the Rent Tribunal shall be deemed to be a Magistrate under the said Code for the purposes of such recovery.
7. (7) An order made by a Rent Tribunal or an order passed in appeal or revision, or review under this Chapter shall be executable by the Rent Tribunal as a decree of a civil court and for this purpose, the Rent Tribunal shall have the powers of a civil court.
8. (8) The Rent Tribunal may set aside any order passed ex-parte if the aggrieved party files an application and satisfies him that notice was not duly served or that he was prevented by any sufficient cause from appearing when the case was called for hearing.
9. (9) Save as otherwise expressly provided in this Act, every order made by the Rent Tribunal shall, subject to decision in appeal, be final and shall not be called in question in any original suit, application or execution proceedings.