9911796707
TMI Blog1992 (5) TMI 71X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... relevant clauses of the said agreement are extracted below : " 1. 1 The Lessee shall pay to the Lessor for the said premises a yearly rental of 96,000 Indian Rupees (Ninty-Six Thousand) in advance on the 1st Day of April each year of the Lease period without any deduction whatsoever .............................. 5. The Lessee at the time of occupation shall see that all the sanitary, electrical and other fittings are in perfect working order and that nothing is broken or missing. At the determination of the Lease the Lessee shall be responsible to restore them in the same condition in which they were received, subject however to normal fair wear and tear. 6.1 The Lessee undertakes to use the demised premises for the purposes of resi ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... s required above. 12. The Lessee shall at his own expense maintain the Gardens and the lawns for their use. 13. The Lessee shall keep the demised premises in habitable condition and carry out at their own cost, the day-to-day repairs to the demised premises and sanitary/electilcal installation and when necessary in order to maintain the said premises in the same condition as they were when leased to the Lessee subject however to normal wear and tear. The Lessee shall be liable to compensate the Lessor for any damage or loss whatsoever to the premises and the sanitary/ electrical and other fittings during the period of the Lease. 15. That at the expiry of the Lease period, i.e., on 31-3- 1987, the Lessee shall hand over the vacant and ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... epairs '. We are thus constrained to take the view which has been also conceded by both the parties that the ' cost of repairs ' in sections 9(1) and 9(1)(ii) would mean the cost of substantial repairs. " Relying on the Supreme Court decision in Sir Shadi Lal Sons v. CIT [1988] 169 ITR 5101, Ld. Counsel submitted that the covenant in the present case was one under which the assessee had undertaken " substantial repairs " and as such was entitled to claim 1/6th deduction on account of repairs. It was also submitted that the document of Lease Agreement had to be read harmoniously as a whole. 5. Smt. Sheba Bhattacharya, Ld. D. R., on the other hand, submitted that the first appellate authority had given a categorical finding that the pro ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... . In our considered view, normal wear and tear on account of inexorable flux of time cannot anci does not fall within the province of ' repairs ' as contemplated by section 24(1)(i) of the Act. If a building or fixture was to be restored to its original form to overcome the ravages of time then such expenditure shall be on account of replacements and renewals and not on account of repairs. As per clause 5 of the Lease Agreement, the lessee is responsible to restore all the sanitary, electrical and other fittings, at the time of determination of the lease in the same condition in which they were received subject, however, to normal wear and tear. According to clause 12, the lessee has to maintain the gardens and the lawns for their use. Clau ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
|
