This article delves into the controversies surrounding the interpretation of the term "building" and explores efforts to alleviate the confusion and provide clarity. In order to address these issues, the income tax act now mandates a specific definition for the term "building." The article further examines different cases that have contributed to the discrepancies in understanding.

Introduction
The concept of Income from the House property has one essential condition that is the Income must be received from the building or the land appurtenant. Here the word land appurtenant means that the land which is attached to the building. As this condition is totally focused on the word building so it is essential that there should be a proper definition of the word 'building'. In the Income tax act, the word is not defined anywhere.

The reference is always taken from the decided case laws by the courts. Along with reference the meaning is somehow derived from the decided cases by different courts. But in various cases there is a different interpretation of the word building. So it became highly disputable which definition is more appropriate than the other. As all the cases are decided by the court only, so it is very difficult to make the decision regarding the appropriation of one definition over the other by the courts. This means that the confusion is only resolved when the act itself defined the meaning of the word 'building'. When a proper definition of the term in the act itself is given then there remains no scope of confusion.

This paper discussed about the need of the definition in the income tax in detail. The paper started with the introduction and discuss about the challenges faced by the court at the time of decision related to the concept of the building. The challenges are due to lack of proper definition in the act itself. The next chapter discuss about the meaning of the word 'Building' with the help of different dictionaries.

The definition are providing the inferences that roof is considered as an essential part of the building and without roof the structure is not considered as building. The same is also decided in a case law which is further discussed in the chapter. In the next chapter the cases where the word building is defined and judgment related to the same is given are discussed. Due to the disparity in the cases there is a need of the definition of the word Building under Income Tax act. This is discussed in detail in the next chapter. The last chapter concludes the paper.

Meaning of the Word Building

As the word 'Building' is very wide and there is no fix definition of the word building. But there are some dictionaries which discussed and mentioned the meaning of the word Building. The definition is discussed following:

According to the Cambridge Dictionary , the meaning of the word building is a structure with walls and a roof, such as a house or factory.[i]

According to the Collins dictionary, the meaning of building is defined as building is a structure that has a roof and walls, for example a house or a factory.[ii]

According to the Oxford learning Dictionary the word building is defined as a structure such as a house, school, or factory that has a roof and walls. [iii]

In the case of J. H. Irani v. Chidambaram Chettiariv, the Madras High Court discussed the definition of a building in relation to the Rent Control Act. Justice Satyanarayana Rao noted that the term "building" is used in various acts, both English and Indian, for different purposes. He referred to a definition given by Lord Esher, M.R., which stated that a building is an enclosure made of brick or stone work covered by a roof. However, Justice Satyanarayana Rao pointed out that in India, the enclosure does not necessarily have to be made of brick or stone work; it could even be made of mud walls. [iv] The key requirement is that it must be covered by a roof, which he believed was in line with the common understanding of what constitutes a building.

After analyzing all the definition given in the different dictionaries and in the above mentioned case law, it can be said that the building means a structure which has a wall and roof. It includes the house, school and factories. These definitions are based on the existence of the roof to make it under the definition of the word building. This makes roofs an important part to become a building. It raises a question whether the structure having no roof considered as building or not. This is discussed in the next chapter.

Cases Related to the Meaning of the word Building

Necessity of Roof
The definition part raised the question whether there is necessity of the roof to make it a building or not. It further raised the important issue that is whether the structure which do not have the roof considered as building or not and if any person is earning any income by using that structure is it considered as income from house property or not. The structure like stadium, swimming pool etc are considered as a building or not as it has no roof and they are open structure only. There are lot of question raised on this point. The answer to the question is given in the following discussed case.

The definition of a building in the case of J. H. Irani v. Chidambaram mentioned that the key requirement of building is that it must be covered by a roof, which was in line with the common understanding of what constitutes a building. In contrast, the Apex Court ruled in Ghanshyam Das v. Debi Prasad[v] that a 'building' does not necessarily need to have a roof and cited examples such as a stadium or swimming pool. It means that the lands which don't possess a roof is also considered as a building. Even the land which is attached to the building like land attached to the school as a playground, land attached to hotel for parking purposes are also considered as land appurtenant and the income derived from it is considered as income from house property.

There is also question related to the building which is taken on lease and the ground rent is paid by the lesser. In that case if the lesser is using the building for business purpose so can it fall under the income from house property or income from profits and gains? So this income will fall under income from profits and gains. This means for the purposes the lesser is using the building, the income will fall under that head of income only.

Structure Intented to Use for Habitation

The word building includes the structure or any structure which is use by the person for living or for habitation purposes. If any structure is used by the person for habitation or constructed for the purposes of living there then the structure is called as building and if the person is using it for himself then no tax is levied but if the person give that building on the rent and earned rental income then the income will charged under the head income from house property.

In the case of V. Chandramani Patta Maha Devi Varu vs. Collector of Vishakhapatnam & Ors. [vi], the court reached a decision stating that any construction intended for habitation, trade, manufacture, commerce, or any other purpose, as well as any structure forming a fabric or edifice, would be considered a building. The court further emphasized that the durability or permanence of a structure should not be the determining factor under the section. Even houses constructed with less permanent materials, commonly known as "Kachcha houses," can be considered as buildings under Section 22 if they enable the occupants to use them for habitation purposes.

Inclusion of Markets

The definition of a building cannot be applied to a mere wall, fence or gate enclosing lands. However, in the case of a market with structures that can be used for commercial purposes, it can be considered a building. The market in question had a compound wall enclosing the site and buildings constructed within it for the convenience of the stall-keepers. Therefore, the erection of a fence or boundary wall is not considered a building, unless it allows the occupier of the main building to use the enclosed area as part of their habitation.

In the case of East India Housing and Land Development Trust Ltd. v. CIT, [vii] a company bought land in Calcutta and built a market with shops and stalls. The company received rent from the tenants and claimed it should be assessed under "Profits or gains of business." However, the court ruled that this income fell under Income from House property. This means that the stalls are considered as part of the building and income earned from them is also considered as income from house property. The court also clarified that a building includes not only a complete building but also a part of it, such as an office, storage, warehouse, factory, shop, or bazaar.

Need of the Definition under The Act
In the above chapter we have discussed that in different cases there is a different interpretation of the word meaning. In one of the case it is stated that there is a requirement of the roof to fall under the definition of the building and in the other case it is stated that roof is not required for the meaning of the building. So it is contradictory to one other. It also creates confusion in the mind of the people related to the meaning of the word building.

If the roof is not a essential requirement of the building then the swimming pool and stadium are also came under the ambit of the definition building and any person earning any income from that building came under Income from House property.

It can be said from the above discussion that the word building is so wide. In every case it increased its meaning by adding further . For example a part of building is also considered as building and any structure which is intended to use for the habitation purpose is also considered as a building. Even companies that have constructed markets and rent out stalls to occupiers, generating income from those stalls, are deemed to receive income from house property.

This implies that the stalls themselves are considered buildings, and the income derived from them falls under the category of income from house property. Furthermore, the definition of a building also encompasses specific portions of a structure. It includes buildings leased for office space, storage facilities, warehousing, factories, shops, bazaars, and other similar uses.

This signifies that building is very wide term and its meaning differ from case to case. As we have some decided cases related to the meaning of the word building but these cases are in oppose to each other and creating a conflict in the meaning of the building. The court has decided the cases on the basis of the facts of the each and taking reference from the already decided cases. If there is already a conflict in the decision of the two cases and both are totally in oppose to one other then it is hard to apply or referring any one case. This urges the urgent need of the clarity related to the definition of the word building.

The clarity is only given when there is inclusion of the definition in the building in the Income Tax Act itself. If there is a clear definition in the act then there is no scope of confusion or conflicts related to the meaning and the definition of the word building. Everything will be clearly mentioned and it will also provide speedy justice to the party. As there is no confusion and clarity in the act itself so the court will also take less time and give their judgment in best possible manner and without any conflict.

Conclusion
In conclusion, we can say that though already cases decided by the court act as a precedent and it became a law as such and applied by the court in the further cases. But if there is conflicts in the decided cases then which case would be apply. It is very significant question and it also creates a great confusion in the mind of the judges while giving the decision. Further the word building has wide interpretation.

So if there is a proper definition of the word building in the act then it will provide clarity not just to the judges but also to the people. The inclusion of the definition in the act is boosting the trials and reduces the appeals. Overall this saves the precious time of the court and provides speedy justice. Inclusion of the definition only attracts the positive points and for the wellbeing of the court and the public. So why not the definition should be included in the act. If the inclusion does not have any negative effect and provide clarity about the definition.

End Notes:

• "Building" (Cambridge Dictionary) accessed April 19, 2023
• "Building Definition and Meaning: Collins English Dictionary" (Building definition and meaning | Collins English Dictionary) accessed April 19, 2023
• "Building Noun - Definition, Pictures, Pronunciation and Usage Notes: Oxford Advanced American Dictionary at Oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com" (building noun - Definition, pictures, pronunciation and usage notes | Oxford Advanced American Dictionary at OxfordLearnersDictionaries.com) accessed April 19, 2023
• Ibid
• AIR 1966 SC 1998
• AIR 1957 AP 867
• 1961) 42 ITR 49 (SC)