Theme: Money & Property

What to do if tenants evicted without giving rent

If you are the landlord and the tenants vacated the house without paying rent, you can file a complaint to the police against your tenant. For this, you will have to go to the police station and file an FIR. You should make sure you give all the information you know about the incident and trouble you have faced with your tenant.

If you are a tenant without a lease agreement and you feel that the landlord is unfairly evicting you for non-payment of rent, please contact a lawyer for further help.

Tenant refusing to vacant house even giving notice

Even after giving notice, if the tenant refuses to vacate the property, this is a breach of contract because the tenant is violating the rent agreement. We would recommend that you contact a lawyer who can assist you based on your specific rent agreement. 

 

If a police officer is refusing to take action on your complaint, then you can: 

  • Write down the complaint and send it to the Superintendent of Police. If the Superintendent feels there is merit in the case, they can appoint a police officer to start an investigation.
  • Take the help of a lawyer while going to the police station. Lawyers can advocate on behalf of a person and reduce the possibility of harassment from police officers.
  • Approach the District/Judicial Magistrate directly to file a ‘private complaint’. Further, if a Magistrate thinks proper investigation is not being done by the officer-in-charge of a police station, the Magistrate can certainly direct the officer to make a proper investigation and can also monitor the investigation. So, you can apply to the concerned Magistrate for monitoring the police investigation, and the Magistrate can then issue appropriate directions for speedy completion of the investigation.

You can also file a complaint against the Investigating Officer for deliberately disobeying any law which regulates the manner of conducting an investigation. Under Section 166A of the Indian Penal Code, 1860, the officer can be punished with imprisonment for six months to two years, along with a fine.

What are the different kinds of disputes with respect to land and immoveable property?

Since land is considered to be one of the most important assets, the range of land-related disputes is huge. However, in this explainer, we will focus on the more common types of disputes, which include:

  • Right of Inheritance Disputes
  • Partition Disputes
  • Land Measurement Disputes
  • Land Encroachment and Boundary Disputes
  • Right of Way Disputes
  • Land Ownership Disputes

What are the laws being discussed?

This explainer deals with the purchase and sale of immovable property in India and various modes of acquisition of property. The same is governed by the Transfer of Property Act, 1882 (“TP Act”); the Foreign Exchange Management Act,1999 (“FEMA”) and FDI Master Circular issued by the Reserve Bank of India on the subject matter. The explainer also aims to discuss foreclosed properties (property, which was kept as collateral for a home loan or mortgage but acquired by the money lender due to non-payment of three or more Equated Monthly Installments (EMIs)), the purchase of which is governed by the Securitisation and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Securities Interest Act, 2002 (“SARFAESI Act”).

What is Income Tax?

Income tax is a tax levied by the Government of India on the income of every person. The Income Tax Act, 1961, covers legal provisions regarding the collection of income tax. ​ There are some important points you will need to keep in mind to understand income tax, such as:

Persons filing Tax

It is mandatory for every person to pay income tax. Income tax law defines the term ‘person’(( Section 2(31), Income Tax Act, 1961)) to include individuals, Hindu Undivided Family etc. Read more here.

Calculating Taxable Income

​​The Income Tax Department taxes you based on your income from categories such as income from salaries etc. The total income calculated from these heads is called the gross total income. It is from this amount that deductions are made. Read more here.

Entities and Income exempt from Tax

Certain entities as well as certain kinds of income are exempt from tax. In other words, income tax will not be charged to such entities and incomes. Some examples include agricultural income, income for scholarships for higher education etc. Read more here.

Deductions with respect to tax

A deduction is an expense that is subtracted from an individual’s gross total income to reduce the amount which is going to be taxed. Deductions can be less than, more than or equal to the amount of income. If the amount deductible is more than the amount of income, then the resulting amount will be taken as a loss while calculating taxes.(( Section 80A, Section – 80AA, Section – 80AB, Section – 80AC, Section 80B, Section 80C, Section 80CC, Section 80CCA, Section – 80CCB of the Income Tax Act, 1961)) Some of the deductions for individuals include income from a loan taken for house property, income from loans taken for higher education etc. Read more here.

Tax Collection

Taxes are collected by the Government through:

Banks in India

Taxpayers can voluntarily pay income tax by going to designated banks. For example, taxpayers can pay advance tax and self-assessment tax in authorized bank branches such as ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, Syndicate Bank, Allahabad Bank, State Bank of India, etc.

Taxes deducted at source [TDS]

When tax is collected from the very source of income of the person receiving income, it is known as ‘taxes deducted at source’ or TDS.(( Tax Deducted At Source, Income Tax Department, available at https://www.incometaxindia.gov.in/Pages/Deposit_TDS_TCS.aspx For example, if you are a professional earning a retainership fee in a company, a certain amount may be deducted by your company as tax when it is given to you. The company will deposit the deducted money to the government. The person whose tax has been deducted at source will get a Form 26AS or TDS Certificate. This will be given to the person by the entity or person deducting the tax. For example,  XYZ Company will deduct an amount for tax before giving Aman his monthly salary, and provide Aman with the TDS Certificate.

Taxes collected at source [TCS]

Tax collected at source (TCS)((Section 206C, Income Tax Act, 1961))

is the tax payable by a seller, which he collects from the buyer at the time of sale. For example, in a parking area of a shopping mall, along with the parking fee, the mall will charge a tax amount for a parking lot. Some other instances where sellers collect TCS are for liquor, while selling a motor vehicle, jewellery, etc.

It is mandatory for a taxpayer to have a PAN Card as well as an Aadhar Card while filing taxes.

Searching for a House

Contact a Broker

When you decide to search for a house or a flat, you may need to contact a broker for the area in which you want to stay in. Brokers are usually paid only after you finalize a house and you sign the contract.

Inspect

Depending on the kind of house (furnished/unfurnished) that you want, you should physically inspect the house to see if all your requirements are fulfilled.

Some basic requirements of a house such as permanent fixtures of water supply, electrical fittings like bulbs, fan etc. should ideally be there in any kind of house you take. Try and negotiate with the landlord/licensor regarding any requirements that you have.

Token Money

If you want some time to think about whether you want to take the house, you can block it by paying token money to the landlord. Paying token money is optional and its purpose is to make sure that the landlord does not show the flat to any other possible tenants/licensee. If you have paid token money, ask for a receipt for the same.

Token money payments are a practice that is not regulated by law.

Be careful when you give the money since taking action against a landlord to get your token money back may be difficult.

Making a Will

You can make a will at any point during your lifetime if you are a

  • Person of sound mind, and
  • Over the age of 18.

The person making the will should be aware of what they are doing.

Illustratively, a person with mental disabilities can also make a will when they are aware of what they are doing. If a person is under the influence of alcohol and does not know what they are doing, then they cannot make a will.

How cheques work?

Let’s understand how cheques work. A cheque is a promise made in writing by one person to another to unconditionally pay a specified amount of money. However, you can also write a cheque to yourself.

For example, if Amit owes Asha Rs. 10,000, he can give Asha a cheque of Rs. 10,000. When Asha presents this cheque to the bank, she will receive Rs. 10,000 as cash or in her bank account. Rs. 10,000 will be deducted from Amit’s account.

In technical terms, as used by bankers and lawyers, a cheque is also referred to as and is a type of a ‘Negotiable Instrument’.

The different parties involved in dealing with a cheque are:

  • The issuer of the cheque (Drawer)
  • The payee/holder of the cheque and
  • The bank (Drawee)

Who is a consumer?

Consumers are people who(( Section 2(7), Consumer Protection Act, 2019.)) buy and use goods or services.  Consumers have a right to file a complaint for any of the services or goods used by them:

Person buying and using goods and services

A consumer includes any person who buys goods and services, as well as anyone who uses them. For instance, a person who watches a movie after buying a movie ticket is a consumer and similarly, a person who uses a gift voucher gifted from someone else  is also a consumer.

Person using goods for self-employment, and not for commercial purposes

The consumer protection law does not apply to people who use goods and services for commercial purposes. However, there are some exceptions to this. For example, a person who buys large machines for using it in their business, is not a ‘consumer’. However, people who use goods for self-employment are considered as consumers(( Section 2(7)(i), Consumer Protection Act, 2019.)).  For example, artists who buy art supplies for their work or beauticians who buy beauty products are consumers.

Person using online facilities

A consumer also includes any person who buys or hires goods or services online. For example, if you order from an online clothes website, you are a consumer.(( Explanation (b), Section 2(7), Consumer Protection Act, 2019.))

People facing issues related to food

Consumers also include people who may be facing issues related to food items, such as adulteration, poor quality, lack of service, etc.(( Section 2(21), Consumer Protection Act, 2019.)) For instance, issues related to food can cover problems across a wide range of products, starting from water that goes into the production of items like  juices as well as the sale of animals like chicken, mutton etc. that are expressly intended for human consumption(( Section 3(j), Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006.))