9911796707
TMI Blog1973 (7) TMI 26X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... the Tribunal dealt with the case. The assessee publishes a Malayalam daily newspaper by name Kerala Dhwani. Till 1953, he was a lecturer in History and Political Science in a college at Kottayam. In 1953, he got a scholarship for higher studies in the United States and he was there from 1953 to 1957 during which period he took his Ph. D. degree. He returned to India by the end of 1957, and then started the newspaper, Kerala Dhwani, in August, 1959. According to the assessee, during his stay in the United States and after his return to India, he was engaged in a movement called India Gospel Mission, for the spread of religion and for crusading against the forces of atheism and the political ideologies which favoured atheism. He has further stated that his friends in America and those who believed in the cause which he was espousing were sending him donations and helping the movement. These donations were being handed over or were being collected by the Indian Christian Crusade, U.S.A., and were being remitted to him by the Crusade from the U.S.A. through banks in India. From the above source, the assessee admittedly received a sum of Rs. 2,90,220 during the accounting period relev ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... not being capital gains chargeable according to the provisions of section 12B and not being receipts arising from business or the exercise of a profession, vocation or occupation, which are of a casual and non-recurring nature or are not by way of addition to the remuneration of an employee. The assessee's case was that the payments were made to him in his personal capacity and were made to him as personal gifts and testimonials because of the personal relations and friendship between the assessee and those who made the contributions. His case has been clearly stated in the communication dated 3rd January, 1962, addressed to the Income-tax Officer by the chartered accountants who represented the assessee: "The source of credit in the personal account of Dr. K. George Thomas is from the money received by Dr. George Thomas as gifts from the Indian Christian Crusade, California, and from several of his friends in the United States. The receipts are purely personal gifts and testimonials paid as a token of esteem and regard for the personal qualities of Dr. George Thomas, and is unconnected with any particular act or service. There is no specific purpose for the contributions, but ar ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... y, fully, occupied with the activities connected with achieving the objects of strengthening faith in God and fighting against atheism. After his return to India from the U.S.A., he was solely occupied with this affair. The paper which he published for this purpose was a daily coming out with views in support of this mission. There can be various occupations in life. Even religion can be an occupation. It has been so ruled. Teaching religion can be an occupation. And it is unnecessary that an occupation must have for its object the earning of a livelihood. Anything in which a person is engaged systematically can be an occupation or a vocation. If the question of receipts being treated or omitted to be treated as income arises, the further question as to whether those receipts can be said " to arise " from such occupation or vocation will naturally have to be considered. That is the aspect which we must now consider. Two decisions of the English courts and a decision of the Supreme Court which has referred to the English decisions have been brought to our notice. These decisions dealt with the claim for deduction and the question was whether the claim could be said "to arise" from ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ses the question that arose for consideration was whether within the meaning of section 100, Schedule D, Case 1, Rule 3 of the Income Tax Act, 1842, the sum claimed was or was not a loss connected with or arising out of a trade or business. The words construed are very similar to that part of section 4(3)(vii) of the Act with which we are concerned excepting that the words " connected with " are left out in section 4(3)(vii). We are inclined to think that section 4(3)(vii) may, therefore, have more limited application than the English statute construed in the above decisions. Whatever it be, the question is whether in this case the receipts can be said to arise out of the occupation of the assessee. The Indian Christian Crusade is an organisation having the same objects as those of the assessee. There were many people in the U.S.A. who held the same views and the same ideals as those of the assessee and the Indian Christian Crusade. They made voluntary payments to the Indian Christian Crusade who passed them on to the assessee. There is, therefore, a link between the activity of the assessee and the payments, in that the payments were made by those who held similar views as those o ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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