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TMI Blog1969 (2) TMI 172X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... r referred to as the lessee) since a number of years at a monthly rent of ₹ 12.50. The lessee had constructed at his own cost a tiled house on the said plot of land. The Malad area merged into Greater Bombay on 1st February, 1957. Upto the date of the merger the Malad District Municipality was assessing and levying taxes on the land and the structure separately and recovering the same from the landlord and the tenant. After the merger, the Bombay Municipal Corporation issued a notice to the appellant Under Section 167 of the Act informing him that the assessment book had been amended by inserting the name of the appellant and that the rateable value of the house had been fixed at ₹ 430/-. Being aggrieved by this order the appellant preferred an appeal to the Chief Judge, Small Causes Court, Bombay Under Section 217 of the Act." The appeal was dismissed by the Chief Judge," Small Causes Court by his order dated 3rd August, 1960. The appellant took the matter in further appeal to the Bombay High Court. The appeal was heard by Mr. Justice Patel and was dismissed on the 14th January, 1964. The learned Judge felt that he was bound by the decision of Chagla, C.J. an ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... hereto in order to provide for the expense necessary for fulfilling the duties of the corporation arising Under Clause (k) of Section 61 and Chapter XIV; (ca) the education cess leviable Under Section 195E; (d)"betterment charges leviable under Chapter XII-A. Section 146 provides :- 146. (1) Property taxes shall be leviable primarily from the actual occupier of the premises upon which the said taxes are assessed, if such occupier holds the said premises immediately from the Government or from the corporation or from a fazendar. Provided that the property taxes due in respect of any premises owned by or vested in the Government and occupied by a Government servant or any other person on behalf of the Government for residential purposes shall be leviable primarily from the Government and not the occupier thereof. (2)"Otherwise the said taxes shall be primarily leviable as follows, namely :- (a)"if the premises are let, from the lessor; (b)"if the premises are Sublet," from the superior lessor; and (c)"if the premises are unfet," from the person in whom the right to let the same vests. (3)"But if any land has been let for any term exce ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... mine the rateable value of any building or land and the person primarily liable for the payment of any property tax leviable in respect thereof the Commissioner may require the owner or occupier of such building or land, or of any portion thereof, to furnish him, within such reasonable period as the Commissioner prescribes in this behalf, with information or with a written return signed by such owner or occupier- (a)"as to the name and place of abode of the owner or occupier, or of both the owner and occupier of such building or land; and (b)"as to the dimensions of such building or land, or of any portion thereof, and the rent, if any, obtained for such building, or land, or any portion thereof. (2)"Every owner or occupier on whom any such requisition is made shall be bound to comply with the same and, to give true information or to make a true return to the best of his knowledge or belief. (3)"The Commissioner may also for the purpose aforesaid make an inspection of any such building or land. Section 156 states : The Commissioner shall keep a book, to be called "the assessment book" in which shall be entered every official year- (a) a list of ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ely mentioned. In Section 154(1) of the Act again, the Legislature uses the expression 'building or land'. Then Section 155 provides for the right of the Commissioner to call information from the owner or the occupier in order to enable him to determine the rateable value of any building or land and the person primarily liable for the payment of any property tax levied in respect thereof. Section 156 provides that the Commissioner shall maintain a book to be called 'the assessment book which book is to contain among other things a list of all lands and buildings. Therefore, the scheme of Section 146 is that when the land is let and the tenant has built upon the land, there should be a composite assessment of tax upon the land and building taken together." We are further of opinion that in the case of such a composite unit the primary liability of assessment of tax is intended to be on the lessor of the land Under Section 146(2)(a) of the Act. It was objected by Mr. Khambatta that the appellant was only the lessor of the land and not of the building, and so, the appellant cannot be held to be the lessor within the meaning of Section 146(2)(a). We do not think that t ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... nt of property tax upon the lessee who has constructed a building on the land. Even upon that assumption we think that the view of the law expressed by the Bombay High Court in this case ought not to be interfered with. The reason is that in a case where the meaning of an enactment is obscure, the Court may resort to contemporary construction, that is the construction which the authorities have put upon it by their usage and conduct for a long period of time. The principle applicable is "optima legum interpres est consuetudo", 2 Co. Rep. 81. In Ohlson's case [1891] 1 Q.B. 485, 489., in dealing with the interpretation of Section 39 of the Pawnbrokers Act, 1872, Stephen, J. said: What weighs with me very greatly in coming to the present conclusion is the practice of the Inland Revenue Commissioners for the past sixteen years. So long ago as 1874 this very point was decided by Sir Thomas Henry, for whose decisions we all have very great respect; and the least that can be said with regard to the case before him is that he pointedly called the attention of the commissioners to the case-the learned magistrate having offered to state a case-an offer refused by the commissio ..... 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