TMI Blog1976 (5) TMI 1X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... court was delivered by JASWANT SINGH J.-- This is an appeal by certificate of fitness granted by the High Court of judicature at Allahabad under section 66A(2) of the Indian Income-tax Act, 1922 (hereinafter referred to as "the Act"), from its judgment dated September 18, 1969, in I.T.R. Misc. Case No. 836 of 1963. The facts giving rise to this appeal are: The appellant, a Hindu undivided family, consisted of Gauri Shankar, the father, and his three sons, viz., Chandrabhan, Bengali Lal and Brij Kishan. Gauri Shankar, the karta of the family, who was in charge of the affairs of the family during the relevant year which extended from April 13, 1945, to April 12, 1946, the assessment year being 1946-47, died on April 2, 1946. He was suc ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... undivided family on June 22, 1956. The Income-tax Officer on being satisfied after making enquiries that a complete partition of the joint family property has taken place, recorded an order under section 25A(1) of the Act on March 26, 1962, accepting the partition with effect from June 22, 1956, as claimed. Against the penalty of Rs. 26,000 imposed by the Income-tax Officer by his order dated March 20, 1958, the appellant preferred and appeal to the Appellate Assistant Commissioner, who reduced the penalty to Rs. 15,000. Not satisfied with this reduction, the appellant went up in further appeal to the Income-tax Appellate Tribunal and raised before it a number of contentions. Amongst other things, it was urged before the Tribunal that since ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... hand, counsel for the appellant had reiterated before us that since the Hindu undivided family had dissolved on June 22, 1956, as accepted by the Income-tax Officer vide his order dated March 26, 1962, passed under section 25A of the Act and the Act did not provide any machinery for imposition of the penalty on the Hindu family after its disruption, the imposition of penalty on March 20, 1958, was bad in law and could not be sustained. Counsel appearing on behalf of the revenue has, on the other hand, urged that imposition of the impugned penalty cannot be challenged as, in view of section 25A(3) of the Act, a Hindu undivided family must be deemed to have continued in existence till the date of the passing of the order under section 25A(1) ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... o the portion of the joint family property allotted to him or it; and the Income-tax Officer shall make assessments accordingly on the various members and groups of members in accordance with the provisions of section 23: Provided that all the members and groups of members whose joint family property has been partitioned shall be liable jointly and severally for the tax assessed on the total income received by or on behalf of the joint family as such. (3) Where such an order has not been passed in respect of a Hindu family hitherto assessed as undivided, such family shall be deemed, for the purposes of this Act, to continue to be a Hindu undivided family." It will be noticed that sub-section (3) of the above-quoted section embodies ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... f the estate as it is capable of being made, the Income-tax Officer shall hold an inquiry, and if he is satisfied that the partition had taken place, he shall record an order to that effect ...... The Income-tax Officer may assess the income of the Hindu family hitherto assessed as undivided notwithstanding partition, if no claim in that behalf has been made to him or if he is not satisfied about the truth of the claim that the joint family property has been partitioned in definite portions, or if on account of some error or inadvertence he fails to dispose of the claim. In all these cases his jurisdiction to assess the income of the family hitherto assessed as undivided remains unaffected, for the procedure for making assessment of tax is ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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