COMMISSIONER OF AGRICULTURAL INCOME TAX Vs. MALAYALAM PLANTATIONS LIMITED

JUDGEMENT

(1.) In these three references made by the Kerala Agricultural Income Tax Appellate Tribunal, under S.60 (1) of the Agricultural Income Tax Act, 1950 the common question referred is the following:

(2.) Police expenses were incurred for stationing police force in the assessee's estates to maintain law and order during strikes and other disturbances. Litigation expenses were incurred in connection with encroachment cases, assault cases and industrial disputes, and the claims represented advocate's fee, court expenses etc. Amounts were also spent towards wages and T. A. of the assessee's employees who were witnesses in courts in cases relating to theft of rubber and assault cases. Samples of the cumblies to be distributed among the workers under the Plantations Labour Act had to be approved by the Inspector of Plantations, and expenses had been incurred for sending these cumblies to the Inspector. These were generally the nature of the expenses in dispute; there were also some miscellaneous items of a similar nature.

(3.) The Appellate Tribunal held that these were permissible deductions under S.5(j) of the Act, as the amounts had been spent wholly and exclusively for the purpose of deriving the agricultural income In so holding, it relied on certain decisions rendered under the Indian Income Tax Act, 1922 and expressed the view that S.5(j) of the Agricultural Income Tax Act corresponds to S.10(2)(xv) of the former. The revenue challenges this view, and the contention is that the scope of the two provisions is different