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TMI Blog1993 (7) TMI 134X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ng as orderlies at the residences of its officers. The scheme remained in force up to 8-5-1989. On 9-5-1989 the said scheme was discontinued as per Board's order No. RSEB/Rules/F. 57(6)/D-31 dated 9-5-1989. Para Nos. 4 5 of the abovementioned order, however, provided that: "4. Henceforth, the reimbursement of the amount spent by the officers for maintaining office/official decorum at their residence according to their official status by utilising the service of person/persons will be admissible on submission of prescribed certificate and subject to the financial limits as under: (i) Superintending Engineer and equivalent and above (for utilising the services of one/or more persons) Rs. 500 p.m. (ii) Assistant Engineer and Executive Engineer and equivalent, (for utilising the service of a person) Rs. 350 p.m. 5. The Members of the Board who are at present allowed a regular class-IV employee to work as orderly for attending the telephone, etc., at their residence may also have the option of keeping a class IV employee or claiming reimbursement under the new scheme at the rate allowed to officers of the rank of superint ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Principal Officer of the Board was under no obligation to deduct tax thereupon at source as required by section 192(1) of the Act. In this behalf Mr. C.L. Jhanwar, CA, the learned counsel for the assessee-Board vehemently urged that the Central Government by its Notification SO 267(E) Dated 29-3-1990 had exempted such orderly allowance from tax under section 10(14) of the Act. The learned counsel further submitted that before disbursing the salaries to them, the Board had duly obtained certificates from the concerned officers regarding utilising the services of the persons to help them in maintaining offices and official decorum at their respective residences. It was also submitted that the certificates so submitted by the officers before drawing their salaries were required to be considered as sufficient proof of spending the amounts of the special allowance on the utilisation of services of the helpers in the performance of their official duties. In this behalf Mr. Jhanwar referred to CBDT Circular No. 568 dated 27-7-1990 to highlight the fact that wherever it was intended that a particular exemption / deduction be allowed on production of evidence of actual expenditure, the int ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... within any of the following clauses shall not be included: '(14) (i) any such special allowance or benefit, not being in the nature of a perquisite within the meaning of clause (2) of section 17, specifically granted to meet expenses wholly, necessarily and exclusively incurred in the performance of the duties of an office or employment of profit, as the Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, specify, to the extent to which such expenses are actually incurred for that purpose; (ii) any such allowance granted to the assessee either to meet his personal expenses at the place where the duties of his office or employment of profit are ordinarily performed by him or at the place where he ordinarily resides, or to compensate him for the increased cost of living as the Central Government by notification in the Official Gazette, specify, to the extent specified in the notification:' Provided that nothing in sub-clause (ii) shall apply to any allowance in the nature of personal allowance granted to the assessee to remunerate or compensate him for performing duties of a special nature relating to his office or employment unless such allowance is related to th ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... nisters, Officers of Parliament and the leaders of opposition was not considered assessable in their cases [vide Salaries Allowances of Ministers Act, 1952, salaries and allowances of officers of Parliament Act, 1953, Salaries and Allowances of Leaders in Opposition Act, 1977 and High Court and Supreme Court Judges (Condition of Service) Act, 1986]. 14. In the instant case the specified officers in the employment of the Board were having the facility of regular IVth class employees at their residences under Board Order No. RSEB/Rules/F-57(6)/D.44 dated 6-1-1989. They used to help the officers to keep the office rooms in their residences neat and clean, to carry out the bundle of the files to the residences of the officers and vice versa, to maintain secrecy and security of the records under possession at the residences, to attend to telephones and its allied information regarding complaints, trips etc., to call on emergency the technical persons and officers for visiting the required places and do the needful there etc. etc. Thus the IVth class employees engaged by the Board to work at the residences of the officers were to discharge official duties and the facility so provided ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... of section (10). In this behalf SO 267(E) dated 29-3-1990 may usefully be reproduced here: "In exercise of the powers conferred by sub-clause (i) of clause (14) of section 10 of the IT Act, 1961, the Central Govt. hereby specifies the following special allowances, specifically granted to meet expenses wholly, necessarily and exclusively incurred in the performance of the duties of an office or employment of profits, for the purposes of the said sub-clause, namely: (a) any allowance (by whatever name called) granted to meet the expenditure incurred on helper where such helper is engaged for the performance of the duties of an office or employment of profit; (b) any allowance granted for encouraging the academic, research and other professional pursuits; (c) any allowance granted to meet the expenditure incurred on the purchase or maintenance of uniform for wear during the performance of the duties of an office or employment." 18. We have already held that the Orderly allowance had been specifically granted to the officers to meet expenses wholly, necessarily and exclusively incurred in the performance of the duties of their respective offices. By the notification under ref ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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