TMI Blog1971 (11) TMI 13X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... n order of composition under section 65 of the Madras Agricultural Income-tax Act of 1955. It is no doubt true that when the petitioner filed an application for composition on June 16, 1966, he included in his return the total extent of his land including the above extent of 29.37 acres of land, which was admittedly in excess of the ceiling limit of the holding which the petitioner could possess or own. But as the lands were included in the returns made by the petitioner, the Agricultural Income-tax Officer passed an order of composition as above on July 28, 1966. Thus he included in the said order the extent of 29.37 acres of land also for computing the amount of tax payable by the petitioner under the process of composition available unde ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... f the land. But the question is whether such possession would disentitle the petitioner from claiming relief under section 65, clause (9) of the Agricultural Income-tax Act. The Madras Land Reforms Act is intended to provide for the fixation of ceiling on agricultural land holdings, which was one of the agrarian reforms brought to subserve the principles in article 39 of the Constitution of India. The said article provides that the State should direct its policy towards securing that the ownership and control of the material resources of the community are so distributed as best to subserve the common good. Section 7 of the Land Reforms Act provides that on and from the date of the commencement of that Act, no person shall be entitled to h ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... April 6, 1960, he was holding the relative land not as owner, then is he liable to pay income-tax because he continued to possess them as an individual, may be for the State, but not as its owner? The learned Government Pleader sustains the order under the proviso to section 10(1) of the Agricultural Income-tax Act. Section 10(1) dealing with exemption from assessment of the which prescribes the ceiling limit, runs as follows : "10. (1) Nothing contained in this Act shall apply to a person who holds land not exceeding twelve and a half standard acres : Provided that no person who held or holds land during any part of a financial year in excess of the exempted extent shall be entitled to the exemption under this sub-section even though ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... of the language of section 7 of the Land Reforms Act, he cannot hold the same as owner because such excess lands are earmarked as State lands for common purposes. Such being the case, the element of possession, which is the only feature which is conspicuous in the instant case cannot convert such possession into ownership as is ordinarily understood in jurisprudence ; and if the circumstances disclose that the petitioner cannot, in the eye of law, be said to be owner of such excess land then he cannot be said to be a person who held or holds the land during any part of the financial year in excess of the exempted extent, as contemplated in the proviso to sub-section (1) of section 10 of the Agricultural Income-tax Act. The Commissioner of ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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