(1)
No rent and other charges deposited under section 17 shall be considered to have been validly deposited under that section, unless the deposit is made within twenty-one days of the time referred to in section 16 for payment of the rent and other charges.
(2)
No such deposit shall be considered to be validly made, if the tenant wilfully makes any false statement in his application for depositing the rent and other charges, unless the landlord has withdrawn the amount deposited before the date of filing an application for the recovery of possession of the premises from the tenant.
(3)
If the rent and other charges are deposited within the time mentioned in sub-section (1) and does not cease to be a valid deposit for the reason mentioned in sub-section (2), the deposit shall constitute payment of rent and other charges to the landlord, as if the amount deposited had been validly tendered.