Southern Municipality Wins Appeal, Evicts Tenant After 31 Years

TDT | Manama
Email : editor@newsofbahrain.com

The High Appeals Court has upheld the termination of a 31-year-old lease agreement between the Southern Municipality and a tenant who sublet a plot of land without permission. The court ordered the tenant's eviction.

The municipality filed the lawsuit in 1981, seeking to terminate the lease and evict the tenant. The lease, signed in 1981, covered a 215,168 square-foot plot of land designated for scrap metal trading. The tenant, in violation of the lease terms, sublet the land for 50,000 dinars without the municipality's knowledge or consent. The municipality only discovered this when the tenant attempted to transfer the lease to another party.

The lower court initially ruled in favour of the municipality, ordering the lease termination and eviction. The tenant appealed, claiming to have received permission from the municipality for the transfer.

The Appeals Court, however, rejected the appeal. The judges emphasised the principle that a contract is binding on both parties and cannot be unilaterally altered or rescinded except by mutual agreement or for legally defined reasons. The court highlighted that the lease explicitly stated that it was personal and non-transferable, and that subletting was prohibited. Clause 7 of the lease stipulated that any breach of contract would result in immediate termination without objection.

The court found that the tenant's subletting of the land constituted a clear breach of contract. The court referenced clause 7, which included a clear termination clause, stating that any breach by the tenant would automatically terminate the lease, requiring immediate vacating of the property.

Because the tenant violated the lease terms by transferring the land, the court upheld the lower court's decision. The appeal was dismissed, and the tenant was ordered to pay court costs. The eviction order is now in effect.