How to draft a regular first appeal (R.F.A) in rent matters? What is the remedy against the decree of rent amount? The format is given here for ready reference, please do the necessary amendments according to the facts and circumstances.

Regular first appeal (R.F.A)

Purpose: To challenge a decree, whereby the trial court held the appellant to pay the outstanding rent amount to the decree-holder.

Appellate forum: High Court

(Name with parentage and address of the appellant). …Appellant

Versus

(Name with parentage and address of the respondent/s) …Respondent

REGULAR FIRST APPEAL (R.F.A) U-S 96 C.P.C AGAINST THE IMPUGNED JUDGMENT & DECREE DATED 20.02.2020 PASSED BY LEARNED CIVIL JUDGE 1^ST CLASS (WEST) ISLAMABAD, WHEREBY THE LEARNED CIVIL JUDGE, DECREED THE SUIT FOR RECOVERY OF OUTSTANDING RENT OF THE RESPONDENT.

Respectfully Sheweth:-

That brief facts arising to the instant appeal are that the respondent filed a suit for recovery of Rs.15,50,000/- along with interest against the appellant with averments that the respondent being a landlord rented out the property i.e. plot No. 4-A, Unit No. 4, 5,6 A&B Plaza Sector G-11 Markaz Islamabad against a monthly rent of  Rs.20000/- along with 10% annual increment vide lease agreement dated  11.03.2009 Exh. P1 and 07.03.2009 Exh.P2. The appellant became a rent defaulter in December 2010 and instead to pay the rent indulged in litigation in form of several suits. The respondent obtain possession of the above property on 07.07.2017 in pursuance of an ejectment order dated 16.03.2017 Exh.P3.

The appellant/defendant resisted the suit while filing of written statement by narrating the real facts in preliminary objection No. 2.      

Divergent pleadings of the parties necessitated the framing of the issues and in support of their claim, both the parties lead oral as well as documentary evidence and the learned trial court ultimately vide judgment and decree dated 20.02.2020, decreed the suit of the respondent as prayed for, hence this regular first appeal (R.F.A) on the following: -

G R O U N D S

That the impugned judgment & decree dated 08.09.201 is against the facts and law, therefore liable to be set aside.

That the learned trial court while deciding the crucial issues i.e. issue No. 1 committed illegalities with material irregularities and failed to appreciate the fact that the respondent-plaintiff in para No. 1 of the plaint claimed himself as the owner of the suit property and filed the suit as the owner but based his claim that the respondent-plaintiff is a special attorney of Z.K Alvi but said special attorney is not produced in evidence and even otherwise the said attorney died on 15.03.2005 which fact is admitted by the plaintiff while appearing PW-1 during cross-examination that lease agreements Exh. P1 & P2 were executed on the basis of the special attorney of Z.K Alvi not produced in evidence and those lease agreements were executed on 11.03.2009 and 07.03.2009 respectively but these facts were erroneously ignored by the learned trial court while handing down the impugned judgment and decree. Even otherwise, the plaintiff being PW-1 also admitted during cross-examination that the property in question is transferred in his name during the previous year. It is pertinent to mention here that the cross-examination was conducted on 29.10.2020, meaning thereby that if the alleged stance of the plaintiff /respondent is believed to be correct for the sake of argument, then the entire story narrated in the plaint is falsified from this fact as the stay was confirmed in favor of appellant on 27.07.2016 i.e. Exh. D6 and suit were decreed on 30.07.2021 i.e. Ech. D7 but these aspects were illegally and erroneously ignored by the learned trial court while passing the impugned judgment and decree.    

That the learned trial court also committed illegalities while not taking into consideration the documents Exh. D2, Exh. D3, D.10, D12, D13, and Mark-A to C, thus committed material irregularities resulting in grass misreading and non-reading of evidence causing serious prejudice to the case of appellant /defendant.

That learned trial court also committed illegalities while deciding issues no. 2 & 3 against the appellant /defendant while ignoring the overwhelming documentary evidence and particularly the pleadings and oral evidence of the parties available on the record. 

That the learned trial court while passing the impugned judgment and decree treated it as a case of ejectment rather a case for recovery of arrears of rent and while mentioning and interpreting the provision of Islamabad Rent Restriction Ordinance 2001 failed to appreciate the pleadings and admission of plaintiff /respondent as PW-1 while ignoring the overwhelming the documentary evidence available on the record.

That the final arguments from the respondent-plaintiff side were advanced on 29.04.2021 whereas the appellant /defendant advanced his final argument on 28.05.2021 and thereafter the file was kept pending for decision for almost four months and then impugned judgment and decree was passed.

That the learned trial court also failed to appreciate the fact while handing down the impugned judgment and decree that the ejectment order dated 16.03.2017 (Exh.P3 & D14) was obtained ex-parte and failed to appreciate the factum of judgment and decree Exh.D5 and Exh.D10.

That the impugned judgment and decree is based on surmises and conjectures which fact is evident from the bare reading of the impugned judgment and decree.

That the impugned judgment and decree is cause serious prejudice to the appellant and committed material illegality and irregularity which cause a grave miscarriage of justice to the appellants.

That if the impugned judgment and decree dated 20.02.2020 is not set aside, the appellant shall suffer an irreparable loss.

PRAYER

In view of the above circumstances, it is, therefore, most respectfully prayed that while accepting the appeal, the impugned judgment & decree dated 20.02.2020 passed by the learned trial court may kindly be declared illegal, unlawful, against the record and same may kindly be set aside consequent whereof suit of the respondent-plaintiff may graciously be dismissed with costs, in the interest of justice.

Appellant               through                 Counsel

Dated: (__)

Certificate:-

Certified that this is the first appeal on the subject ever moved before this Hon’ble Court.

It is further certified that no such appeal, or petition is pending or decided on the same subject matter by the Hon’ble Supreme Court of Pakistan.

…Appellant