Recovery of arrears of rent under the certificate procedure in certain cases

(1) Any landlord (other than the Government) whose land is situate in an area for which a record-of-right has been prepared and finally published and in which such record is maintained, may apply to the State Government, through the Deputy Commissioner of the district in which his land is situate, for the application of the procedure prescribed by the Bihar and Orissa Public Demands Recovery Act, 1914 (B & O Act 4 of 1914) to the recovery of arrears of rent which he alleges are or, may become, due to him for lands in such area.

(2) The State Government may reject any such application, or may allow it subject to such terms and conditions as it may see fit to impose, and may at any time add to or vary any terms or conditions so imposed, or withdraw its allowance of the application, without in any of these cases, assigning any reason for its action.

(3) When any such application has been allowed, the landlord may make a requisition in writing, in the form prescribed, to the Certificate Officer for the recovery of any arrears of rent which he alleges are due to him from any tenant.

(4) Every such requisition shall be signed and verified by the landlord making it in the manner prescribed by Rule 1 in Schedule II to the Bihar and Orissa Public Demands Recovery Act, 1914 (B & O Act 4 of 1914), as amendment for the time being by rules made under Section 39 thereof, and shall be chargeable with a fee of the amount which would be payable under the Court-fees Act, 1870 (7 of 1870) in respect of a plaint for the recovery of a sum of money equal to that stated in the requisition as being due.

(5) On receipt of any such requisition, the Certificate-Officer may, in accordance with such rules as the State Government may prescribe in this behalf, and if he is satisfied that the arrear is due, sign a certificate in the prescribed form stating that the arrear is due, and shall include in the certificate the fee paid under sub-section (4), and shall cause the certificate to be filed in his office :

Provided that,-

(a) no certificate shall be signed for the recovery of arrears of rent of a tenancy regarding which a suit has been instituted in the Court of the Deputy Commissioner for the alteration of the rent payable by the tenant, or the determination of his status as a tenant, in respect of the period during which it is alleged in the requisition made under sub-section (3) that the arrears of rent sought to be recovered have accrued, and

(b) if, after the signing of a certificate, it is found that such a suit was instituted in the Court of the Deputy Commissioner before the certificate was signed, such certificate shall be cancelled.

(6) The person in whose favour any certificate is signed under sub-section (5) shall be deemed to be the certificate-holder for the amount mentioned in the certificate and the person against whom the certificate is signed shall be deemed to be the certificate-debtor for the said amount; and all proceedings taken by the certificate-officer for the recovery of such amount shall be taken at the instance of the first mentioned person, and at his cost and responsibility, and not otherwise.

(7) The Bihar and Orissa Public Demands Recovery Act, 1914 (B & O Act 4 of 1914) with such restriction and modifications (if any) as may be prescribed, shall apply to the execution, and to all proceedings arising out of the execution, of certificates filed under sub-section (5).

(8) No landlord shall, during the pendency of any proceeding under this section, institute a suit for the recovery of any arrears of rent in respect of which he has made a requisition under sub-section (3); and, subject, to the provisions of Section 43 of the Bihar and Orissa Public Demands Recovery Act, 1914 (B & O Act 4 of 1914), no tenant shall, after the signing of any certificate against him under sub-section (5) of this Section, institute a suit before, or make an application to the Deputy Commissioner for the alteration of the rent payable by him, or the determination of his status as a tenant, in respect of the period during which the arrears of rent for which such certificate was signed have accrued.

(9) The word "landlord" in this Section includes an entire body of landlords, and also one or more co-sharer landlords, who collects or collect his or their share or shares of the rent separately; and where the Certificate Officer signs a certificate on the requisition of one or more such co-sharer landlords, he shall at the same time issue to each of the remaining co-sharer landlords a copy of such certificate.

(10) Nothing in this Section shall apply to a 'Mundari khunt-kattidari' tenancy, notwithstanding that it constitutes, or is situate in an area described in sub-section (1)