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TMI Blog1996 (9) TMI 202X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ll be final. 3. The dispute amongst the Executors and the Trustees of the will arose on account of valuation of certain immovable properties. By a Reclamation Lease dated 1-3-1933, late Shri Hirji Hormasji Kanga was given on lease 399 acres of land in Thane district for a period of 999 years for reclamation and subsequent agricultural use. He had also acquired occupancy rights in other adjoining lands making a total of 412 acres. By his letter dated 7-10-1951, the Collector of Thane permitted Shri Hirji H. Kanga to use the above-mentioned lands for the manufacture of salt. 4. However, the said land of 412 acres was converted into a partnership property by a deed of partnership dated 27-3-1980 effective from 1-7-1979. In the said partnership late Shri Hirji H. Kanga and his wife Smt. Piroja H. Kanga along with their three sons mentioned above became the partners. Under the terms of the partnership deed, late Shri Hirji H. Kanga and his wife Smt. Piroja H. Kanga brought their respective interests in the aforesaid lands by way of capital contribution to the said partnership business. The said deed of partnership provided that late Shri Hirji H. Kanga and Smt. Piroja H. Kanga would ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... New Bombay area, and for whom the lands of Hormaz Salt Works were being acquired, being in urgent need of the said lands for the execution of its schemes towards the speedy development of New Bombay, approached the partners for an amicable settlement which the partners ultimately agreed to, vide the agreement dated 2nd March, 1984. As per the terms of this agreement, CIDCO agreed to pay ex gratia sum of Rs. 37,64,205 on the condition that the partners would withdraw the Civil Suit No. 668 of 1982. 10. Simultaneously, the acquisition proceedings were also going on. As per the Award under section 11 of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894, the Special Land Acquisition Officer also made a payment of Rs. 24,15,044 to the partners. The payment of Rs. 37,64,205 by the CIDCO and the payment of Rs. 24,15,044 by the Special Land Acquisition Officer came to the notice of the Assistant Controller of Estate Duty. 11. On receipt of this information, the Assistant Controller was of the view that the dutiable estate has escaped assessment. She, therefore, reopened the assessment under section 59 of the Estate Duty Act with a view to include the amount received from the CIDCO and the compensation r ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ancement notice. After hearing the parties to the dispute, he was of the view that the principal value of the estate as on the date of death should have been Rs. 61.80 lakhs. He accordingly enhanced the principal value of the estate and directed the Assessing Controller to take into account the enhanced value of the estate. He concluded his appellate order with the remark "Appeal decided with enhancement as above." 15. Against the order of the Appellate Controller, the appeal has been filed before us by Mrs. Piroja H. Kanga and Dr. Sarosh H. Kanga. 16. Shri Homi Kanga and Shri Rohinton Kanga also filed a petition before the Tribunal with a request that they should be made a party to the appeal filed by Mrs. Piroja H. Kanga and Dr. Sarosh H. Kanga. This petition of Shri Homi H. Kanga and Shri Rohinton H. Kanga was disposed of by the Tribunal, vide their order dated 9-3-1992. In the said order, the Tribunal has decided as under : "We have examined the facts and considered the arguments. We have also considered the legal aspects of the application not to join him a party respondent. In our opinion the applicant Mr. Homi Kanga being one of the executors has every right to file a ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... o the Appellate Controller. The person, therefore, must be aggrieved with the order of the Assistant Controller so as to legally approach the Appellate Controller for relief. He pointed out that the word "objecting" used in section 62 of the Estate Duty Act conveys the same meaning as the word "aggrieved" in section 246 of the Income-tax Act. Before a competent appeal could be lodged, the person must be objecting to or aggrieved by the determination of the tax liability. In this connection, the learned counsel has also drawn our attention to Form ED-9A in which the appeal has to be lodged. He pointed out that the said Form also clearly demonstrates that only a person objecting to the determination of Estate Duty payable is competent to file an appeal. 19. The learned counsel has taken us through the decision of the Supreme Court in the case of Adi Pherozshah Gandhi v. H.M. Seervai, Advocate General of Maharashtra AIR 1971 SC 385. In the said case, the brief facts were that the appellant was an Advocate from Maharashtra. The Bar Council of the State of Maharashtra had called upon him suo motu to show cause why he should not be held guilty of misconduct. It appeared that the appell ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... he notice of the Appellate Controller that only Dr. Sarosh H. Kanga was the authorised person to attend to the matters of the estate. The learned counsel thus concluded that Shri Homi H. Kanga was not objecting to or a person aggrieved by the order of the Assistant Controller and, therefore, could not have validly filed any appeal before the Appellate Controller. The appeal filed by him to the Appellate Controller was, therefore, not maintainable in law. The Appellate Controller, therefore, should not have entertained the appeal from him and should have dismissed the same as incompetent. 23. On merit also, the learned counsel extensively argued the case and pointed out that the Appellate Controller was in error in determining the value of the estate at Rs. 61.80 lakhs. 24. Shri A.K. Khaladkar, representing Shri Homi H. Kanga supported the decision of the Appellate Controller. He pointed out that Shri Homi H. Kanga was one of the Executors and Trustees of the will and, therefore, was entitled to file an appeal. Shri Homi H. Kanga, he argued, was also objecting to and was aggrieved with the order of the Assistant Controller. Shri Homi H. Kanga was a teacher and, therefore, his re ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... can exist only if it is given by a statute. Therefore, in case there is no provision provided in the statute for filing an appeal regarding a particular matter, no appeal shall lie. 30. Under the provisions of the Estate Duty Act, appeal could be filed only by a person who objects to the determination of the value of the principal estate of the deceased. A person can object to the determination of principal value of the estate, if he is required to pay more tax than what, according to him, should be the correct tax or he also cannot object to the order of the Assistant Controller, if according to such a person he is not liable to pay any tax at all. The word 'objecting' in the Estate Duty Act conveys the same meaning as the word 'aggrieved' in section 246 of the Income-tax Act. Section 246 of the Income-tax Act gives a right of appeal to any person aggrieved of any of the orders specified in that section. Any person who feels disappointed with the result of the case is not a person aggrieved. He must be disappointed of a benefit which he would have received if the order had gone the other way. The order must cause him a legal grievance by wrongfully depriving him of something. Un ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... h, if lesser amount of tax is demanded. Such an objection could be made only if more tax is demanded. Shri Homi H. Kanga was required to pay his share of tax from the total demand of Rs. 1.57 lakhs. Mr. Homi H. Kanga, however, in his appeal to the Appellate Controller wanted more tax to be paid by the estate of the deceased. In these circumstances, it cannot be said that Shri Homi H. Kanga was objecting to or aggrieved with the assessment order of the Assistant Controller. As already mentioned above, no appeal lies unless a person is objecting to or aggrieved with the order of the Assistant Controller. Thus, in our view, Shri Homi H. Kanga was not objecting to or aggrieved with and, therefore, could not have filed legally competent appeal. 32. We have carefully considered the submissions of Shri A.K. Khaladkar and Dr. Balasubramanian. It is true that Shri Homi H. Kanga is a teacher and in our Indian society a teacher normally enjoys a high reputation. However, the reputation of a teacher is not marred merely because he is asked to pay less tax. The reputation of the teacher has nothing to do with the payment of tax, more tax or less tax. During the course of the hearing the Bench ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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