CHAANDAS HARIDAS Vs. COMMISSIONER OF INCOME TAX BOMBAY NORTH KUTCH AND SAURASHTRA AHMEDABAD

JUDGEMENT

(1.) , J. : This is an appeal with the special leave of this Court against the judgment and order dated 16/02/1955, of the High Court of Bombay in an Income-tax Reference under S. 66 (2) of the Indian Income-tax Act.

(2.) THE appellants are two assessees, Charandas Haridas and Chinubhai Haridas, whose cases are identical and in fact there was a consolidated reference by the Income-tax Appellate Tribunal, which was answered by the High Court by its judgment. THE respondents are respectively the Commissioner of Income-tax, Bombay North, Kutch and Saurashtra and the Commissioner of Income-tax, Delhi, Ajmer, Rajasthan and Madhya Bharat. THE two appellants represented two units of Hindu undivided families. Charandas Haridas represented his wife, three sons and himself, and Chinubhai Haridas represented his wife, son and himself. In stating the facts relative to the two families, it will not be necessary to give them separately, because the question which was answered by the High Court in the judgment under appeal arose in identical circumstances in the two families. THE only difference is in the shares held respectively by the two Hindu undivided families in the managing agencies to be hereafter mentioned. We will, therefore, confine ourselves to a statement of the facts relating to Charandas Haridas only.

(3.) THE High Court stated that though the reference was very elaborately argued, it raised a very simple question of fact and all that it was required to find out was whether there were materials before the Appellate Tribunal upon which the finding of fact could be rested. THE High Court held that though the finding a given by the Appellate Tribunal could not be construed at a finding that the document was not genuine, the method adopted by the family to partition the assets was insufficient to bring about the result intended by it. According to the High Court, the Appellate Tribunal was right in holding that the document was ineffective, and though the income might have been purported to be divided and might, in fact, have been so divided, the source of income still remained united as belonging to the Hindu undivided family. It accordingly answered the question in the affirmative, holding that there were materials before the Tribunal on which it could reach the conclusion that in so far as these income-bearing assets were concerned, they still belonged to the Hindu undivided family. Leave to appeal to this Court was refused by the High Court but Charandas Haridas applied to this Court and obtained special leave, and the present appeal was filed.