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TMI Blog1963 (2) TMI 33X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... of the Act and the present appeals are against the High Court's answers to these questions. The assessee is a trader carrying on two businesses, namely, manihari (general merchandise) and bidis. He had also certain income from property but with this income we are not concerned in these appeals. For each of the assessment years concerned, the assessee had submitted a return but as his accounts were not found complete and reliable, the Income-tax Officer had assessed the gross profits of the businesses on the basis of certain percentages of the total sales which had also to be fixed by estimates. No question arises in, these appeals as to the correctness of these assessments. Subsequently, while dealing with the assessment for the year 1948- ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... er the heads "Ghar Khata" and "Muhammad Islam Khata" respectively, acceptable and ordered their deletion from the assessment for the year 1945-46, but otherwise maintained the orders of the Income-tax Officer. Thereafter, under the orders of the High Court under section 66(2) of the Act made at the instance of the assessee, the Tribunal framed six questions in each of the assessment cases and referred them to the High Court, for its decision. The questions framed were identical in the two cases excepting as to one minor matter in question No. 6 which made no difference and the reference in the two cases were heard together. These questions were answered by the High Court against the assessee and hence, the present appeals by the assessee. A ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... of this question. Questions can be referred under section 66 of the Act when they are questions of law which arise out of the facts found by the Tribunal and which the Tribunal is said to have answered erroneously thereby unlawfully imposing a burden of tax on an assessee. On questions of fact, the Tribunal is the final authority and such questions cannot be referred to a High Court for its decision. Now the present question assumes that the Tribunal has made an inference. Either that inference is one of fact or it is one of law. If it is of fact, no question with regard to it can be referred to the High Court. If it is one of law, then a question whether the inference could in law be drawn might be referred to the High Court. But the quest ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... in our view rightly, for we do not think that any other answer is possible. We are in some difficulty in appreciating the point of this question also. The question would seem to suggest that because the income from a disclosed source has been computed on the basis of an estimate and not on the basis of the return filed in respect of it, an income represented by a credit entry in the books of account of that source cannot be held to be income from another and undisclosed source. We do not see why it cannot be so held. It appears from the judgment of the High Court that the reason given in support of the suggestion was that if that income was held to be income of an undisclosed source, the result would be double taxation of the same income wh ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... uggests, and that suggestion is in our view wholly without foundation. Therefore, it cannot be said that the taxing authorities were precluded from treating the amounts of the credit entries as income from undisclosed sources simply because the entries appear in the books of a business whose income they had previously computed on a percentage basis. That is why we think that the answer to the question as framed must be in the affirmative. As we have earlier said, the question as to the source from which a particular income is derived has to be decided on all the facts of the case. In the present case, the Income-tax Officer held the income represented by the credit entries to be income from undisclosed sources, that is, neither from the man ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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