B.P.Jeevan Reddy, C.J. - (1.) The Income-tax Appellate Tribunal, Delhi, has stated the following two questions under Section 256(2) of the Income-tax Act, 1961 : "(i) Whether the assessee's claim for a partial partition of the immovable properties under consideration was legally acceptable under Section 171 of the Income-tax Act, 1961 ? (ii) Whether the Tribunal was in law justified in directing exclusion of the income from the properties under consideration from the assessment of the assessed Hindu-undivided family ?"
(2.) The questions referred in all the references are identical. The assessee is also the same in all the references. It would, therefore, be sufficient if we refer to the facts in Income-tax Reference No. 199 of 1979.
(3.) The assessee is a Hindu undivided family, Onkar Saran and Brothers. For the assessment year 1970-71, the assessee claimed that there has been a partial partition amongst the members of the Hindu undivided family and requested the Income-tax Officer to recognise and record the same. The claim of partial partition was made with respect to the interest the Hindu undivided family held in certain immovable properties known as Kothiwal Nagar properties. The partial partition was said to have taken place on October 2, 1968.;