LAHORE: The Lahore High Court (LHC) has set aside a rent tribunal order that required landlords to deposit a hefty fine based on a disputed rent amount.

Justice Raheel Kamran passed the judgment while allowing a petition filed by Asma Kashif and others, who challenged an order of the special judge (rent), Lahore.

The tribunal had directed the landlords to deposit a fine calculated on a claimed monthly rent of Rs130,000 in an ejectment case involving a shop.

The landlords had initiated eviction proceedings against their tenant on grounds of default and expiry of tenancy, pleading that the tenant had not paid rent since 2015.

During the proceedings, the tenant argued that the tenancy did not comply with the Punjab Rented Premises Act 2009 and sought imposition of a statutory fine on the landlords as a precondition for pursuing the case.

The rent tribunal accepted the tenant’s plea and ordered the landlords to deposit the fine based on the Rs130,000 monthly rent they had stated in their eviction petition.

However, the landlords challenged this order before the high court, saying the rent figure was disputed and had not been adjudicated.

In its ruling, Justice Kamran observed that while deposit of fine under Section 9 of the law was mandatory, it could not be imposed arbitrarily.

The judge held that where the rate of rent was contested, the tribunal must first make a tentative determination of the rent based on available material instead of relying solely on the landlord’s assertion.

The judge ruled that adopting an unverified rent figure could lead to unfair financial burdens, while relying on outdated or nominal rent would defeat the purpose of the law.

The judge said a balanced and fair approach was required to ensure due process. Setting aside the impugned order to this extent, Justice Kamran directed the rent tribunal to reassess the rent on a tentative basis and then recalculate the fine accordingly.

He further ordered that the landlords be given reasonable time to deposit the revised amount.

The judge clarified that this tentative determination would not affect the final outcome of the eviction case, which would be decided independently on merits.

Published in Dawn, March 29th, 2026