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Issues Involved:
1. Whether the defendant was a lessee or a licensee. 2. Validity of the termination notice issued by the plaintiffs. 3. Entitlement to a permanent injunction. Detailed Analysis: 1. Whether the defendant was a lessee or a licensee: The primary issue in this appeal was to determine the nature of the relationship between the defendant and plaintiffs 1 to 3 concerning the right to tap coconut trees for toddy. The court examined the terms of the agreement dated 1st March 1935 (Ex. P. 1) to ascertain whether the defendant was a lessee or a mere licensee. The agreement granted the defendant the right to enjoy the toddy yield from the trees and to enter the land for this purpose but did not confer any rights to the land itself. The court noted that the defendant was not entitled to exclusive possession of the land, which indicated a license rather than a lease. However, the court also considered whether the right to tap the trees constituted a "benefit to arise out of land," which would make it immovable property under Section 3(25) of the General Clauses Act. Citing precedents, the court concluded that the right to tap the trees for toddy is indeed a benefit arising out of land, thus constituting immovable property. Therefore, the right conveyed under Ex. P. 1 was in the nature of a leasehold right, making the defendant a lessee. 2. Validity of the termination notice issued by the plaintiffs: The plaintiffs had issued a notice on 5th September 1947, requiring the defendant to vacate the property by 1st October 1947, claiming that the defendant's license had expired. The defendant argued that he was an agricultural lessee entitled to six months' notice. The court found no evidence to support the plaintiffs' claim of an oral lease for one year ending on 30th September 1947. Consequently, the court held that the lease should be presumed to be from year to year, necessitating a proper and valid notice for termination. The notice issued on 5th September 1947, was deemed insufficient and invalid as it did not comply with the requirement for a reasonable notice period for agricultural leases. 3. Entitlement to a permanent injunction: Given the court's finding that the defendant was a lessee and that the lease had not been validly terminated, the plaintiffs were not entitled to a permanent injunction. The court concluded that the defendant retained his rights under the lease, and thus, the plaintiffs' suit for a permanent injunction restraining the defendant from entering the gardens and tapping the trees was dismissed. Conclusion: The appeal was allowed, and the suit was dismissed with costs throughout. The court determined that the defendant was a lessee with a leasehold right to tap the coconut trees for toddy, and the termination notice issued by the plaintiffs was invalid. Consequently, the plaintiffs were not entitled to the permanent injunction they sought.
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