9911796707
TMI Blog1981 (3) TMI 144X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... question against the claim. He, however, submits that the matter is pending before the Supreme Court, and, therefore, wants to keep the issue alive. 2. We find that the Karnataka High Court in the case of Smt. V. Pramila v. CED [1975] 99 ITR 221, the Andhra Pradesh High Court in the cases of CED v. Estate of Late Omprakash Bajaj [1977] 110 ITR 263 and CED v. Smt. P. Leelavathamma [1978] 112 ITR 739, the Gujarat High Court in the case of Smt. Shantaben Narottamdas v. CED [1978] 111 ITR 365 and the Allahabad High Court in the case of Maharani Raj Laxmi Kumari Devi v. CED [1980] 121 ITR 1002 have held the estate duty payable was not to be deducted from the principal value of the estate. Following respectfully the aforesaid decisions, we upho ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ate Duty Act and that section 39 of the Act provides that such an interest will be the share in the joint family property which would have been allotted to the deceased had there been a partition immediately before his death. Thus, for the purpose of computing the value of the deceased's interest, one has to contemplate a notional partition as envisaged under the Shastric Hindu Law. In this connection reference may usefully be made to article 304 of Mulla's Hindu Law which defines 'property available for partition' as the joint family property as reduced by the provision to be made for the maintenance and marriage expenses of such members of the family who are not entitled to a share on partition. It is pertinent that in the State of Tamil ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... the accountable persons, Shri Kumbhat, the learned counsel for the accountable persons, contended that the aforesaid decision was distinguishable. He stated that there was no partition as in the present case and we were only to compute the value of the deceased's interest in the joint family property on the assumption of partition in the family immediately before his death. It is pointed out that the Hindu Adoptions and Maintenance Act makes provision for the maintenance of dependent members of the family vis-a-vis the property of the deceased and not the property out of which the deceased gets by way of his share. Shri Kumbhat thus submits that the obligation as regards maintenance of the dependent members of the family is both on the ind ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... s of the Hindu Adoptions and Maintenance Act refer to the maintenance qua deceased own property only and not the joint family property in which the deceased also had an interest and, therefore, that the Act may not modify or affect the maintenance provisions as regards joint family property under the Shastric Hindu law, also seems apparently significant. However, the issue is squarely covered by the Madras High Court decision and it is not open to us to distinguish it on the ground that some relevant aspects were not considered in that case. The propriety demands of us to assume that all such aspects were considered but their Lordships did not consider it worthwhile to refer to them in their order. Therefore, respectfully following the said ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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