Petition Filed in the Delhi High Court Regarding Waiver of the Outstanding Rent of Tenants.

Petition Filed in the Delhi High Court Regarding Waiver of the Outstanding Rent of Tenants.

-Shubhangi Zite

A petition has been filed in the Delhi High Court by Mr. Gaurav Jain regarding the waiver of the outstanding rent of tenants due to the economic crisis caused by the lockdown. The petition asks waiving off the rents of people belonging to the economically challenging background such as maids, cooks, laborers,  factory workers, e-rickshaw drivers, cycle-rickshaw pullers, street vendors, shop attendants, office boys, guards, etc., these people have suffered tremendous losses of their livelihood as well as savings. These people are the ones who are most hit due to the lockdown done to control the spread of COVID-19.

The petition further states that “those people who have lost their livelihood and savings due to lockdown, face a serious risk of getting evicted from their homes if they do not pay the outstanding rent for the months of April, May, and June. And if they pay the rent they face a serious risk of starving to death or have to beg to survive as they will be left with no money to buy food after paying the rent. It is inhuman and unconstitutional to subject anyone to a choice between eviction, begging, or death.”

The petitioner further mentioned that if a person is forced to pay the rent of the premises then it leads to the violation of his fundamental rights under Article 19 and 21.