9911796707
TMI Blog1983 (9) TMI 106X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... HUF consisting of himself and his wife and, therefore, he had only one-half share in those assets and it is that one-half share which could be said to pass on his death for estate duty purposes. The Assistant Controller has considered this matter under a heading 'Status claimed HUF but taken as individual'. He rejected the claim of the A.P. by observing that 'the wife cannot in any way claim partition of the property and husband was fully competent to dispose of the property, there being no other coparcener'. He in this manner rejected the claim of HUF and held 'The status will be taken as individual instead of HUF'. This phraseology in the context of status in the estate duty assessment proceedings appears to be inappropriate. But what the ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... the issue may be referred to a Special Bench. The revenue, on the other hand, relied on the decision of the Amritsar Bench in the case of Smt. Asha Rani and filed a relevant extract from it. Apart from that decision, the revenue also cited two decisions of the High Court---one of the Punjab High Court at Chandigarh in Parshotam Dass v. CED [1966] 62 ITR 449 and the other of the Allahabad High Court in Vithal Das v. CED [1972] 85 ITR 432. It was submitted by the departmental representative that in view of the authority of the Punjab High Court in favour of the revenue the same should be followed and there was no need for constitution of a Special Bench. 3. We have given careful thought to the submissions of both the sides. It is true that ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... but his observation will relate to that section. Further, so far as the Appellate Controller is concerned, he has followed decision of the Amritsar Bench of the Tribunal, which is clearly based on section 6. We quote the relevant paragraphs 6 and 7 from the order of the Tribunal in the case of Smt. Asha Rani : "6. The next ground is that the Assistant Controller should have taken only one-half value of the property belonging to the HUF of which the deceased was the sole surviving coparcener. Only other member of the family was his wife. The claim of the assessee had been rejected by the lower authorities on the ground that being a sole surviving coparcener he was fully competent to dispose of this property on the date of his death. It was, ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Amritsar Bench in the case of Smt. Asha Rani and are of the opinion that under section 6 entire HUF assets of the deceased shall be deemed to pass on his death as at the time of his death he was competent to dispose of those. The deceased was the only male coparcener or what is losely called sole surviving coparcener holding the ancestral properties which remained with him on the separation of his only son from him in March 1966. The right of sole surviving coparcener in respect of alienation of ancestral property is considered in article 257 in Mulla's Treatise on Hindu Law, 15th edition. We quote clause (1) of article 257 : "(1) A person who for the time being is the sole surviving coparcener is entitled to dispose of the coparcenary pr ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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