EVICTED FAMILY TO RETURN HOME
ANadi family, who were evicted by their landlord, can now return to their home after the High Court in Lautoka issued an order.
The family’s sole breadwinner, Zainal Khan, 41, a tile layer, is currently without a job due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The court order has come as a sigh of relief for him. Mr Khan’s family include a one-month-old child. The family reside at Alla Datta Road in Nadi and were locked out on April 28, after the family had returned from a baby clinic .
“During this crisis, I have got no job. I only used some of my savings for us to survive. On Tuesday when we were told to evict the house, it added more pressure,” he said. Mr Khan said after they returned from the clinic, they noticed a chain with a big padlock on the door. They were informed by a neighbour that the landlord had locked them out. “We called and requested the landlord to allow us to enter the house so we can take out the food and milk for our three children, but she refused. “We had to stand in the hot sun for almost two hours and my baby daughter was crying. I decided to take my family to a relative’s place in Ba.”
Mr Khan said they approached West Lawyers Messrs Patel & Sharma to assist them. He said they had been renting that house for almost five years, which he claimed to have paid their rent to the landlord, Mehitaab Begum.
“We were up-to-date with our rent payments and we have the receipt of our payment from Ms Begum as well. It has been one month now since she has gone to Australia. We have requested her to waive our rent from April, which she had agreed.
“There may be dispute among the landlord’s family, but we are grateful that we have been allowed back into our home,” Mr Khan added.
The court order says that Mr Khan’s family are allowed to enter and reside on the Agreement for Lease on iTaukei Land Trust Board (TLTB) (Reference number 6/10/43021).
The matter was called before Judge Mohammed Azhar at the High Court in Lautoka, last Friday.
The matter is adjourned to May 8.