1984 (7) TMI 38
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....d two houses, viz., one at Bombay known as " Dhanraj Mahal " and another at Pune known as " Pudumjee Terrace ". The assessee had raised certain loans both for the purpose of constructing the said houses and also to meet his personal needs. While it is not necessary to set out the history of the dealings between the assessee and his creditors, it is sufficient to mention that, so far as the house " Dhanraj Mahal " at Bombay is concerned, a suit (O. S. No. 452 of 1954) was filed by the creditor, M/s. Secunderabad Trading Syndicate, represented by Sri M. M. Malani, against the assessee. The suit was decreed and the suit property was brought to sale in execution of the decree. The sale was notified to be held on December 2, 1959. But before the....
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....me arising from the house property till the assessment year 1968-69. But after the Finance Act, 1968, amended clause (iv) of sub-s. (1) of s. 24 of the I.T. Act, the ITO disallowed the said interest as a deduction. This was challenged by the assessee in appeal before the AAC. The matter ultimately went before the Tribunal. The Tribunal held that the deduction is allowable. It held that, on the facts and in the circumstances of the case, the deduction fell within clause (iv) of sub-s. (1) of s. 24. Thereupon, the Revenue asked for and obtained this reference. Section 24(1) of the I.T. Act specifies several deductions which can be allowed out of the income from house property. Clause (iv), as amended by the Finance Act, 1968, reads as foll....
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....annual charge is deductible out of the house property income. A good amount of controversy is raised before us as to the meaning of the word " voluntarily " occurring in the said clause. The said word cannot be understood as signifying a meaning opposite to the words " by operation of law ". If that was the intention of Parliament, it would have used the words " by act of parties ", which is the expression generally understood as the opposite of the words " by operation of law ". Here, the expression used is " voluntarily ", which must be understood as distinct from, and as opposed to, the expression " involuntarily ". The word " involuntarily " means, without there being any option, i.e., under an enforceable obligation. On this reasoni....
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....unt of the principal due under the mortgages; payment of any such amount would be a capital charge and not permissible under cl. (iv). We find that there are no decided cases throwing light on the meaning of the word " voluntarily ". Two decisions, one of the Bombay High Court in CIT v. Bakshi Dalip Singh [1980] 122 ITR 96 and the other of the Delhi High Court in CIT v. Dr. Rameshwarlal Pahwa [1980] 123 ITR 681, are brought to our notice. But, both these cases arose and were decided with reference to the unamended cl. (iv). Therefore, there was no occasion for them to discuss the meaning of the expression " voluntarily " which occurs only in the amended cl. (iv). In CIT v. Bakshi Dalip Singh [1980] 122 ITR 96, the Bombay High Court found....
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