- (1.) THIS judgment will dispose of Tax References Nos. 1 to 5 of 1973 and Nos. 12 to 16 of 1975. The said references have been made under Section 256 (1)/27 (1) of the I. T. Act, 1961/w. T. Act, 1957. The assessment years for the purposes of income-tax involved in these references are 1966-67, 1967-68, 1968-69 and 1969-70; whereas for the purpose of wealth-tax, the assessment year is 1967-68, Wealth-tax References Nos. 5 of 1973 and 16 of 1975 relate to wealth-tax whereas the remaining references relate to income-tax of the assessment years referred to above.
(2.) THE relevant facts giving rise to these references are that the HUF of Shri Kundan Lal originally comprised of Sarvashri Krishan Kumar, Raj Kumar, Vijay Kumar (sons), Smt. Kailash Wati (wife) and Miss Arun (daughter ). Shri Krishan Kumar separated from the family on 11th July, 1956, vide registered deed of the same date. The rest of the family continued to live as joint family and there was neither severance of status nor determination of shares of various other coparceners at that stage. On 27th July, 1958, the second son, Shri Raj Kumar, separated from the family. On 14th February, 1966, the third son, Shri Vijay Kumar, also got separated from the family. After the separation of the third son, Shri Vijay Kumar, the family was reduced to Shri Kundan Lal, his wife, Smt. Kailash Wati and their unmarried daughter. Miss Arun. When the three sons of Shri Kundan Lal were separated from the family as mentioned above, Smt. Kailash Wati, wife of Shri Kundan Lal, was not given any share in the joint family property. On 10th March, 1967, a partial partition is alleged to have taken place between Shri Kundan Lal and his wife, Smt. Kailash Wati, vide registered deed of that date.
(3.) THE assessee made an application under Section 171 of the I. T, Act for recognition of the partial partition and also claimed exclusion of the income from the assets which were to have become the separate properties of both Shri Kundan Lal and Smt. Kailash Wati consequent to the alleged partial partition. In the wealth-tax proceedings, it was similarly claimed that the value of the assets so falling to the share of Shri Kundan Lal and Smt. Kailash Wati be excluded from the wealth-tax assessment of the HUF. These claims were investigated into and rejected by the ITO/wto on the ground that a wife could not herself claim a partition as was stated to have been done in this case. It was held that the partition was neither validly operative nor legally enforceable.;