Religious public trusts, public charitable trusts exempted from provisions of TN Tenants Act

The Tamil Nadu government has exempted all premises owned by the Hindu, Christian and Muslim religious public trusts and public charitable trusts from all the provisions of the Tamil Nadu Regulation of Rights and Responsibilities of Landlords and Tenants Act, 2017. An order in this regard was issued by the Housing and Urban Development Department recently.

In view of the increased growth of the real estate sector, broad-based home ownership and availability of more housing stock, the State government enacted the Tamil Nadu Regulation of Rights and Responsibilities of Landlords and Tenants Act, 2017 by repealing the old Tamil Nadu Buildings (Lease and Rent Control) Act, 1960. The Act was amended in 2018 and the amended Act was notified in February 2019.

It came into effect from February 2019 only in urban areas initially and eventually the Act came into force in all villages of the State with effect from February, 2021. It was later amended with regard to restriction on sub-letting, consequences of violation of duties, eviction, among others with effect from June 2022. The Act aims to regulate rent as per the terms and conditions of the agreement between the owner of the premises and the tenant and further seeks to balance the rights and responsibilities of the landlord and the tenant.

The Act provided for compulsory registration of all rental agreements. No provision in the Act was to apply to any premises owned or promoted by the Central or State government or local authority or a government undertaking or enterprise or a statutory body or cantonment board, premises owned by a company, university or organization given on rent to its employees as part of service contract. As per Section (3)(c) of the Act, nothing in the Act was to apply on any premises owned by religious or charitable institutions, as may be, if specified by the government by a notification.