9911796707
TMI Blog1996 (1) TMI 103X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... owner of the ground floor of the property No. 36, Faiz Bazar, Delhi. The construction of the building is said to have started in the year 1947-48 and was completed in or around 1949-50. It appears that on November 22, 1951, the Rent Controller at the instance of the tenants fixed the standard rent of different portions of the house property standing on plot No. 35-36, Faiz Bazar, Darya Ganj, Delhi, under section 7 of the Delhi-Ajmer Merwara Rent Control Act, 1947. The petitioner claims that the standard rent for his portion of the property came to be Rs. 1,331 per month as reflected in the return annexure 'P-1' filed by him for the assessment year 1972-73. It is not disputed that the actual rent of the property which the petitioner receive ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... is as follows : " For the purposes of section 22, the annual value of any property shall be deemed to be the sum for which the property might reasonably be expected to let from year to year : Provided that where the property is in the occupation of a tenant, the taxes levied by any local authority in respect of the property shall, to the extent such taxes are borne by the owner, be deducted in determining the annual value of the property : Provided further that in the case of a building comprising one or more residential units the erection of which is begun and completed after the 1st day of April, 1961, the annual value as determined under this sub-section shall, for a period of three years from the date of completion of the building ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... g. The term "annual value" was defined in both the statutes in almost the same terms. In none of the cases before the Supreme Court standard rent had been fixed in respect of the premises. According to the definition given in both the Acts, the annual value of the building meant the gross annual rent at which the building might reasonably be expected to be let from year to year. The apex court held that even if the standard rent of a building has not been fixed by the Controller under section 9 of the Rent Act, the landlord cannot reasonably expect to receive from a hypothetical tenant anything more than the standard rent determinable under the provisions of the Rent Act and this would be so equally where the build ing had been let out to a ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... jab Municipal Act, 1911. We must, therefore, hold, on an identical line of reasoning, that even if the standard rent of a building has not been fixed by the Controller under section 9 of the Rent Act in respect of a building governed by the Rent Act and the period of limitation prescribed by section 12 of the Rent Act for making an application for fixation of the standard rent having expired, it is no longer competent to the tenant to have the standard rent of the building fixed. The annual value of the building according to the definition given in sub-section (1) of section 23 of the Income-tax Act, 1961, must be held to be the standard rent determinable under the provisions of the Rent Act and not the actual rent received by the landlord ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ect measure of the annual value." Thus, the position is that after the coming into force of the Taxation Laws (Amendment) Act, 1975, the sum for which a building is let out will be regarded as the annual value of the building. Since in the present case the assessment year is 1972-73, the matter will not be governed by the Taxation Laws (Amendment) Act, 1975, and the annual value of the property for the said year must be held to be the standard rent determinable under the provisions of the Delhi Rent Control Act, 1958. Accordingly, the writ petition succeeds and the rule is made abso lute. The impugned order dated February 28, 1975 (annexure "P-4"), passed by the Income-tax Officer, PSC VII, in respect of the Assessment year 1972-73 and ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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