How do I evict a non-paying or problem tenant in Telangana under the Rent Control Act?

Two separate tracks exist:

• Telangana Buildings (Lease, Rent and Eviction) Control Act, 1960 — applies to tenancies it explicitly covers; eviction goes through the Rent Controller, an administrative/quasi-judicial authority, not a civil court.
• Leave and License agreements — the dominant structure for residential rentals in Hyderabad and other Telangana cities today. Courts have consistently held that a genuine licence (as opposed to a lease/tenancy) falls outside rent control protection, so eviction of a licensee proceeds through an ordinary civil suit or, where the agreement provides for it, faster summary remedies.

Check your agreement's actual wording and registration — a document titled 'leave and license' that in substance grants exclusive, indefinite possession may still be treated as a tenancy by a court, so the label alone doesn't decide the outcome.

Where the Act applies, the landlord must apply to the Rent Controller for a direction to evict. Established grounds include:

• Tenant has not paid or tendered the rent due within the time specified in the tenancy or by law
• Tenant has transferred their rights under the lease or sub-let the premises without the landlord's written consent
• Tenant has used the premises for a purpose other than that for which it was let, or caused damage/nuisance
• Landlord bona fide requires the premises for their own occupation or for a family member
• Premises required for demolition/reconstruction that cannot be carried out without vacant possession

1. Send a written demand/notice to the tenant specifying the default (e.g., rent arrears) and a reasonable period to remedy it.
2. File a petition before the Rent Controller having jurisdiction over the property, stating the ground for eviction and attaching the tenancy agreement, rent receipts/ledger, and the notice sent.
3. Notice to tenant: the Controller issues notice and both parties are given an opportunity to be heard.
4. Order: if satisfied, the Controller directs eviction; either party can appeal to the appellate authority prescribed under the Act within the limitation period specified.
5. Execution: if the tenant still doesn't vacate after the order, the landlord applies for police assistance/execution through the Controller's office rather than a separate civil decree process.

For a genuine leave-and-licence arrangement, eviction of a licensee who refuses to vacate after the licence period ends or is terminated is pursued as an ordinary civil matter — typically a suit for possession, or, if the agreement is registered and contains the right clauses, other summary remedies may be available depending on how the agreement is drafted. Because the Rent Control Act's tenant-protective machinery doesn't apply, this route is generally faster than the Rent Controller process — which is precisely why landlords in Hyderabad favour it.