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TMI Blog1974 (6) TMI 24X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... late Controller took the view that no such exemption could be given as that provision does not apply to the house in question. They held that the deceased did not die as full owner of the house and so it did not "belong" to him when he died, so that it could be brought within the ambit of the exemptions provided under section 33(1). It may be noted here that more than two years before his death, the deceased executed a settlement deed under which he retained a life interest in the house and conveyed the vested remainder to his son, who is now the accountable person. Since he had only a life-interest in the house, the Assistant Controller as well as the Appellate Controller took the view that the house did not "belong" to him and consequentl ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... f the matter, nor is it included in the reference. We are not, therefore, going into that matter in this case. Now coming to the exemption under section 33(1)(n), claimed by the accountable person, it reads as follows : " 33. Exemptions.--(1) To the extent specified against each of the clauses in this sub-section, no estate duty shall be payable in respect of property of any of the following kinds belonging to the deceased which passes on his death--... (n) one house or part thereof exclusively used by the deceased for his residence, to the extent the principal value thereof does not exceed rupees one lakh if such house is situate in a place with a population exceeding ten thousand, and the full principal value thereof, in any othe ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... o a person, we say that the property belongs to him. Likewise, if any interest in a particular property is in a person, we also say that that right belongs to him. So it is not possible to limit the scope of the meaning of the words "belonging to" only to full ownership. Even having interest in property can come within the meaning of the words. When one is required to construe the meaning of the words in any particular statute or a document, the precise meaning and the sense has to be gathered by a reading of the provision, and the enactment as a whole or the document in its entirety and adverting to the context in which they occur. We draw support for this view from the decision of the Supreme Court in Raja Mohammad Amir Ahmad Khan v. Muni ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e thereof and any money or investment for the time being representing the proceeds of sale and also includes any property converted from one species into another by any method". It is quite manifest from the definition that the word "property" includes any interest in property, whether it be movable or immovable. The meaning of the word is not confined to an absolute title in the corpus of any property. When interest in property is also "property" within the meaning of the Act, and the same word is used in section 33, it will have to be understood accordingly. If it is so understood, section 33(1) would read like this : "No estate duty shall be payable in respect of property, which includes any interest in property, belonging to the decease ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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