9911796707
TMI Blog1972 (12) TMI 17X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... rate return of net wealth in respect of the properties standing in her name as on March 31, 1957. The Wealth-tax Officer, however, found that the said Appavoo Pillai had been in the habit of investing monies sometimes in his name and sometimes in the name of his wife, that the various advances and investments had been entered in the money-lending accounts maintained by the assessee, that no distinction had been made between the investments in his own name and in the name of his wife, that there was not even a transfer of funds from the assessee's folio to the folio of the wife and that in fact there was no folio in the name of the assessee's wife in the money-lending books prior to March 31, 1956. From these facts the Wealth-tax Officer con ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... in the name of his wife in fact had their origin in the assessee, and that, therefore, the inclusion of the value of the standing in the name of the wife in the net wealth of the assessee was justified. But as regards the immovable properties standing in the name of the assessee's wife the Tribunal held that the transfers had been effected in the name of the wife prior to April 1, 1956, and that, therefore, it could not be included in the net wealth of the assessee in view of section 4(4) of the Wealth-tax Act. At the instance of the assessee the following questions have been referred to this court for decision : " 1. Whether, on the facts and in the circumstances of the case, the inclusion of the movable assets belonging to Lakshmikantham ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... movable properties have been valued at Rs. 1,75,594 and they comprise advances, deposits and investments as under : Rs. 1. 27-9-1949: Loan on promissory note executed by one C. P. Ramaswamy Naidu in favour of the assessee's wife ... 12,000 2. 31-5-1950: On a mortgage executed by one Ramalinga Mudaliar ... 12,500 3. 6-11-1950 : On a mortgage executed by Ratna Studio in favour of the assessee's wife ... 1,15,000 4. 20-12-1953: On a mortgage , executed by one Narayana Rao ... 1,500 5. 14-10-1954: On mortgage executed by Hanumantha Rao ... 3,000 6. Jan., 1957: Deposit with Salem Dharmapuri Union Motor Service Ltd. in the name of the wife ... 21,594 7. Shares in the above company in the name of the wife ... 2,000 8. Cash ... 8,00 ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... assessee is still the beneficial owner of those items and that, therefore, they should all be taken to be benami investments by the assessee in the name of his wife. If the investments are benami for the benefit of the assessee, then the inclusion of the same in the assessee's wealth could not be taken exception to. But what the learned counsel says is that there is no material for the Tribunal to come to the conclusion that the investments, have been made by the assessee for his own benefit in the name of his wife. But we are of the view that the materials referred to by the Tribunal do clearly lead to the inference that the investments were made only for the benefit of the assessee. The facts referred to by the Tribunal are these : Though ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... n March 31, 1956, showing the advances and investments in the name of the wife as her wealth, the treatment of the advances and investments in the books of the assessee clearly shows that the beneficial owner of the said advances and investments was the assessee himself, We are not also inclined to accept the contention of the learned counsel that we must go only by the wealth statement given by the assessee prior to the coming into force of the Wealth-tax Act and overlook the treatment of the said advances and investments as not conclusive. We are inclined to agree with the conclusion reached by the Tribunal on the materials on record that the advances and investments were only made by the assessee in the name of his wife without any inten ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
|
