https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=275264 A defence struck out under section 17 of the West Bengal Premises Tenancy Act is a penal consequence and must be construed strictly. It bars the tenant from leading evidence to prove his own case, but it does not automatically exclude limited participation in the suit. The tenant may, subject to judicial discretion and safeguards against prejudice, cross-examine the plaintiff's witnesses and address arguments confined to testing the plaintiff's proof. The court may prevent any disguised attempt to advance a defence on the merits. en-us Tue, 27 Sep 1988 00:00:00 +0530 Tue, 25 Sep 2018 12:27:00 +0530 TaxTMI RSS Generator https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=275264 A defence struck out under section 17 of the West Bengal Premises Tenancy Act is a penal consequence and must be construed strictly. It bars the tenant from leading evidence to prove his own case, but it does not automatically exclude limited participation in the suit. The tenant may, subject to judicial discretion and safeguards against prejudice, cross-examine the plaintiff's witnesses and address arguments confined to testing the plaintiff's proof. The court may prevent any disguised attempt to advance a defence on the merits. Case-Laws Indian Laws Tue, 27 Sep 1988 00:00:00 +0530 https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=275264