9911796707
TMI Blog1974 (1) TMI 29X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ra. 3 of the statement of the case as under : "One Shri Udham Singh of village Reru, Distt. Jullundur, was a Jat. He died on June 18, 1960. The deceased was a descendant of one of the three Jats who about 200 years ago founded the village Reru. It is situated at a distance of about three miles from the city of Jullundur. Ever since the three sections of Jats have been living in the village and holding a position of supremacy. Their gotras are Virk, Basras and Dhindses. The deceased belonged to the first one. There are three lambardars in the village, two of the Jat family and one of Dharmias (Harijan). The head of the family in the family of the deceased has been one of the two jat lambardars ever since the village was founded. The decea ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... d by the customary law of the Punjab and, consequently, the principal value of all his properties had to be taken into account in computing his estate for the levy of estate duty under the Act. These findings were challenged by the assessee before the Tribunal and the contention that, owing to the passing of the Hindu Succession Act, 1956, it must be held that the ownership of the entire property vested in a Hindu undivided family of Mitakshara school and the assessment of the estate duty should be made on that basis, which had been raised before the two officers below, was again pressed there. This argument had been repelled by the said officers, who held that according to the customary law governing the Hindu Jats, the deceased had full c ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e he had not completed his eighteenth year at the time of his death, if his father or other male ascendant in the male line was not a coparcener of the same family at the time of his death. Explanation.--Where the deceased was also a member of a sub-coparcenary (within the coparcenary) possessing separate property of his own, the provisions of this sub-section shall have effect separately in respect of the coparcenary and the sub-coparcenary ........" "39. (1) The value of the benefit accruing or arising from the cesser of a coparcenary interest in any joint family property governed by the Mitakshara school of Hindu law which ceases on the death of a member thereof shall be the principal value of the share in the joint family property ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... rcenary interest in the joint family property, with the result that the assessment in their cases had to be made under section 7 read with section 39 of the Act. All these questions, e.g., whether (a) custom has been abrogated by the person concerned, (b) he is governed by the Mitakshara school of Hindu law, (c) he forms a joint Hindu family with his sons, and (d) his interest in the property is that of a coparcener, have to be settled in each individual case. The facts found by the Tribunal in the instant case, which have been given above, do not, in my view, lead to that conclusion. The answer to the question of law referred to us, therefore, has to be in the negative, i.e., in favour of the department. It must, however, be made clear ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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