House-property repair deduction applies where the owner remains liable for ordinary repairs and the tenant has not assumed that burden.

A house-property deduction for repairs was available where the tenancy terms required the tenant only to preserve the premises and make good damage from neglect, without assuming ordinary repair costs. In the absence of a contractual shift of that burden, the statutory duty under section 20 of the Rajasthan Premises (Control of Rent & Eviction) Act, 1950, kept the obligation to maintain the premises in good and tenantable repair on the owner. On that basis, the assessee was entitled to the statutory deduction of one-sixth of the annual letting value under section 24(1)(i)(a) for repairs.

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Issues: Whether, in computing income from house property, the assessee was entitled to deduction for repairs at one-sixth of the annual letting value under section 24(1)(i)(a), on the footing that the cost of repairs was to be borne by the owner and not by the tenant.

Analysis: The tenancy correspondence showed that the tenant undertook only to maintain and preserve the premises and to make good damage caused by its neglect, while excluding normal wear and tear. This meant that the tenant had not assumed the cost of ordinary repairs. In the absence of a specific contractual allocation, the statutory obligation under section 20 of the Rajasthan Premises (Control of Rent & Eviction) Act, 1950, required the owner to keep the premises in good and tenantable repair except where the tenant had undertaken to keep the premises in repair. On that basis, the liability for repairs remained with the assessee.

Conclusion: The assessee was entitled to deduction of one-sixth of the annual letting value towards repairs under section 24(1)(i)(a).

Final Conclusion: The disallowance of the claim for repair deduction was set aside and the assessee succeeded in full on the house-property computation issue.

Ratio Decidendi: Where the tenant has not undertaken to bear the cost of ordinary repairs and the owner remains statutorily liable to keep the premises in tenantable repair, the assessee is entitled to the statutory repair deduction in computing income from house property.

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