TMI Blog2006 (10) TMI 83X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... the medical facilities, maintenance and feeding ofthe poor, etc. Amongst other activities, the Trust issupposed to be working for the benefits of its devoteesand Sree Rama Devi, having a temple at Ahmednagar. 2. The trust is also registered under section 11 read with 12A of the Income-tax Act, 1961 as a result, the income from property held by this trust is not included in the total income when it comes to assessment of its income. It is the case of the trust that it is set up for a charitable purpose within the purview of section 2(15) of the Act so as to provide relief to the poor, education and medical reliefs and other object of general public utility. The trust was initially granted exemption under section 80G of the Income Tax on ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e stationed at Ahmednagar, where a temple of Sree Rama Devi is situated. It was pointed out that the Trust provided for feeding of poor at Ahmednagar and also poor people at Madras and Trivandrum. Apart from sending its reply to the Income-tax Officer on January 20, 1992 further detailed representation was made to the Director of Income-tax (Exemptions) on February 7, 1992 wherein the queries raised were replied. It was pointed out that the beneficiaries are a class of persons having a common quality which unites them and this group of persons keeps on changing from time to time and hence it cannot be said that all the beneficiaries are identifiable. The benefit of medical relief and maintenance relief is given generally only to devotees an ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... hat as things stand, the Trust concerned was constituted by the devotees of Sree Rama Devi. It was a small group of persons who are dedicated and apart from providing for the persons who had dedicated for the deity, the Trust also had its objective of helping poor, feeding them, providing medical facilities, etc. He submitted that it is not necessary that the Trust must be for the benefit of the world at large. He relied upon the Judgment of the Apex Court in the case of Ahmedabad Rana Caste Association v. CIT reported in [1971] 82 I.T.R. 704 (S.C.). In that matter, the beneficiaries of the Trust had to be members of the Rana community. The Apex Court however held that the mere fact that a person of the Rana community who was not an ori ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ar is a separate unit. However, in the absence of any justification, the department cannot take a different view from the one it had taken in the earlier proceedings. 8. Mr. Sharma, learned counsel appearing for the respondents on the other hand submitted that the Trust had to be for a specific charitable purpose under section 2(15) of the Income-tax Act. The benefits were given to the devotees who were identifiable and, therefore, it could not be said that the Trust was for the benefit of the public at large. He drew our attention to the affidavit of Mr. Tiwari and pointed out from the return filed by the Trust it was seen that certain amounts were going to particular individuals from the maintenance account and also from the relief ac ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ical benefits, poor feeding and education assistance to a larger number of persons. Mr. Pardiwalla has pointed out that necessary documents were placed before the authorities concerned and they are available on record. This being the position, it cannot be said that the Trust was catering to the needs of only a few. The grounds given by the Income Tax Officer in his decision dated March 27, 1992, therefore, are not tenable. It is not possible to say that the Trust is for identifiable beneficiaries only and not for public at large. It is also not possible to say that it was more in the nature of a private Trust and the benefit to the public was incidental or insignificant. From the facts on record, in our view, the Income-tax Officer was in ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
|
