DHARNI DHAR Vs. STATE OF U P

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner is the owner of House Nos. 47, 48 and 49 situate at Rail Bazar, Etawah. House Nos. 48 and 49 are small and old houses and are not directly in issue, submits the petitioner. House No. 47 which is in the occupation of Life Insurance Corporation as tenant is involved with regard to the determination of house tax. The petitioner now a retired Commissioner of Income Tax, by legal engineering has successfully avoided payment of any municipal tax in respect of said house for the last around 15 years by taking recourse to legal proceedings.

(2.) Admittedly, the said house is fetching handsome amount of rent but the petitioner inspite of various communications, on the one pretext or the other has failed to disclose its actual rate of rent.

(3.) The Nagar Palika Parishad, Etawah by its order dated 5th March, 1997 determined the annual letting value at Rs. 1,66,627.44. The matter was carried in appeal before the Prescribed Authority, namely, Chief Judicial Magistrate, in Appeal No. 4 of 1997. There a strange plea was put forward that annual assessment of the building in question has been wrongly determined at lesser figure than annual rent, therefore, the matter be remanded for fixing the annual value. The Prescribed Authority set aside the assessment order and restored the matter back to re-determination the annual letting value in the light of the objections raised by the petitioner.