Nallaya Koundar vs P.N. Sadaya Koundar alias Appavu Koutndar

This is a suit u/s 38 of the Madras Estates Land Act by a tenant for reduction of rent on the ground that there has been a permanent failure of supply of water from the irrigation works on which the land was dependent. The plaintiff had been in occupation of various plots of these lands for periods going back as far as 25 years in the case of some plots. He bought all these lands in their present condition and he has never known them to be irrigated by any tank at all. The other evidence in the case shows that the tank has not been known to irrigate these lands, certainly for 40 years back, which probably means within living memory. During the whole of this period, the rent, now sought to be reduced has been paid without demur. There is no evidence that there has been any failure of water supply from the tank during the period at which the present rates of rent were being paid. Whatever construction is put upon the section as to the period of limitation within which the failure of supply must take place from the date of the suit brought, certainly it would be an extravagant construction to hold that a reduction can "be obtained in a case where it cannot be shown that the, failure of the water-supply has taken place while the rent was as high as the present figure. We think the appeal fails find whatever remedy the tenant may have by other means, he has none under this particular section.

The second appeal is dismissed with costs.