KRISHNA MENON Vs. CIT

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS is a reference by the Income Tax Appellate tribunal Madras Bench 'b' under S. 113 (1) of the Travancore Income Tax Act 1121. Para. 2 and 3 of the statement of the case indicate the circumstances under which the assessee received the amounts in controversy and read as follows: "2. The assessee , P. Krishna Menon , Trivandrum retired from the service of the former Travancore State as a District superintendent of Police and subsequently disciples gathered about him to receive his teachings in Vedanta Philosophy. As one of such disciples, John H. Levy of England commenced his first contracts with the assessee in or about 1941. He had been subsequently visiting his master from abroad almost annually to spend a few months with him on each visit. For purpose of his stay during such visits he also purchased a residence of Malakkara in Travancore. 3. Levy transferred on 13th December 1941 the entire balance in his Bank account with the Lloyds Bank Ltd, Bombay of Rs. 2 ,41,103 -11-3, to the account of the assessee opened with the same bank for the purpose. Thereafter he remitted to or deposited therein almost always round sums in Pound, Sterling or in Rupees. The source of these remittances is admitted to be part of his rental and investment income in England . From this Bank account, the assessee withdrew large amounts periodically into Travancore with which he made investments in shares in own name, gave large gifts of money to his sons and bought properties in his wife's name too. A statement containing a summary of all the transactions in this Bank account for the period of 13th December 1941 to 1st August 1951 is annexed hereto as Annexure 'a' and forms part of the case".

(2.) ANNEXURE 'a' shows the following payments into the Bombay account of the assessee and withdrawals by him into Travancore during the previous years 1121 ,1122 and 1123 : Table :#1 The Income Tax Officer, as observed in the statement of the case, "assessed the above general withdrawals in column (iii) as remittances into Travancore of foreign profits, under 'other sources' in assessment years 1122,1123 and 1124 M. E. for the respective previous years aforesaid under the Travancore Income Tax Act, 1121 as they were large than the respective foreign accrued income shown in column (ii ). "

(3.) THE word 'vocation' is a word of very wide meaning and is analogous to a calling ( Patridge v. Mollandaine (Surveyor of Taxes ) 2 Tax Cases 179 ). It means the way in which a person passes his life or the pursuit to which he devotes his time. As stated by Iqba l Ahmad, J. , in In re Lala Indra San (1940) 8 ITR 167. "it is obvious that the words "business", "profession", "vocation" and "occupation" have been used in S. 4 (3) (vii) in contradiction to each other and having regard to the scheme of taxation underlying the Act, the conclusion is irresistible that the word "profession" is of wider import than the word "business" and the word "vocation" is of wider import than the word "profession" and lastly "occupation" is a word of wider signification than the word "vocation". In otherwords , what may not amount to business may amount to profession and what may not amount to profession may amount to vocation and what may not amount to vocation may amount to occupation within the meaning of the Act".