HARINDRANATH K T Vs. AGRICULTURAL INCOME TAX OFFICER

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE petitioner in both these cases is the same. By these petitions, he seeks to quash four orders of assessment made under the Agricultural Income-tax Act, 1950, by the Agricultural Income-tax Officer, Manantody, for the assessment years 1965-66 to 1968-69 both inclusive.

(2.) THE only question for decision is whether unsurveyed lands in respect of which the tax payable under the Kerala Land Tax Act has not been assessed or collected are lands "assessed to land revenue in the State" within the meaning of this expression used in the definition of agricultural income. Section 5 of the Kerala Land Tax Act is the charging section; and it provides that subject to the provisions of the Act there shall be charged and levied a tax called "basic tax" on all lands of whatever description and held under whatever tenure. THE rate of tax is fixed at an unifrom rate by Section 6 of the Act, subject to certain qualifications mentioned therein. THE word " assess " has got different meanings depending on the context in which it is used. Chamber's 20th Century Dictionary gives the following meanings:

(3.) COUNSEL for the petitioner submits that only land in respect of which the tax payable under the Kerala Land Tax Act has been actually assessed by the revenue would be land " assessed to land revenue ", and not land on which a tax liability is imposed by the statute. If that be so, the charge of agricultural income-tax would depend on the question whether the tax payable on the lands from which the income arose has been actually determined by the revenue department. That means that, though all lands in the State are subject to land tax, the income from lands in respect of which the tax payable has been determined by the revenue would be charged to agricultural income-tax ; and income from lands in respect of. which the tax payable has not been determined, would not be liable for agricultural income-tax. I am unable to see any justification for such a differentiation. In my view, the liability to be assessed under the Agricultural Income-tax Act depends on the question whether the income is derived from lands subjected to payment of, land tax. As I already stated, the word " assess " has got the meaning "to tax " ; and in my view the word " assessed " is used in the definition of " agricultural income " in that sense. It follows that the income derived from land subject to land revenue under the Kerala Land Tax Act, 1961, would be agricultural income liable to agricultural income-tax. In the result these writ petitions are dismissed. There will be no order as to costs.