COMMISSIONER OF INCOME TAX Vs. PATWARDHAN C A H H SIR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE assessee in this reference is the late Rajasaheb of Sangli who passed away during the pendency of these proceedings and whose heirs have been substituted. For the purpose of this reference, however, and for convenience we shall continue to refer to him as the assessee.

(2.) THE assessment years under consideration are the years 1955 -56, 1956 -57 and 1957 -58 relative to the account years ending June 5, 1954, June 5, 1955, and June 5, 1956. Since the point arising in this reference is the same for all the years we shall only refer to the facts pertaining to one year, namely, 1955 -56, for the sake of convenience. In that year the assessee received a total income of Rs. 73,273 which was comprised of 7 items as follows :

(3.) THE short question that has been posed for our decision is whether this income in the hands of the assessee was income of an HUF or was liable to taxation in the hands of the assessee as an individual. The assessee claimed that the income was being received by him as the Karta of an HUF while the Department claimed that the entire income in dispute received by the assessee was received by him as an individual. It was their case that the property belonging to the assessee was a saranjam and all the other items of income were appurtenant to the saranjam, that the saranjam was impartible and governed by the rule of primogeniture and therefore there is no question of treating the income in the hands of the assessee as belonging to the HUF.