DEOKINANDAN KHETAN Vs. CONTROLLER OF ESTATE DUTY

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS is a reference under section 64 of the Estate Duty Act, 1953. Chiranjilal Khetan died on June 4, 1956, leaving considerable property. He was survived by his widow, Smt. Rami Bai, and adopted son, Shri Deokinandan. Smt. Rami Bai and Deokinandan were the accountable persons under section 53 of the Act. The Assistant Controller proceeded to levy estate duty. In fixing estate duty, he included 1/5th share in certain immovable property situated at Hardwar and Jhunjhnu as property of Chiranjilal Khetan deceased. The valuation of that share was fixed at Rs. 54,720.00. Deokinandan appealed against the order of assessment. The appeal was apartly allowed by the Central Board of Revenue. But the Central Board of Revenue did not accept the appeallants contention that the property at Hardwar and Jhunjhnu was endowed property. Being dissatisfied with the appellate decision, Deokinandan applied for a reference to this court. Accordingly, the Central Board of Revenue has referred the following question of law to this court :

(2.) THE broad facts giving rise to this reference are these : Chiranjilal Khetan was the son of Seth Ram Bilas Rai. A deed of endowment was executed in the year 1919. THE property now in dispute was not included in the deed of endowment. For a number of years the property was recorded in the name of Seth Ram Bilas Rai. He died in the year 1936. In the year 1954, Chiranjilal applied to the municipal board that the property be registered in the name of the manager of Shri Lakhsmi Nathji Temple, Jhunjhnu, because his father Seth Ram Bilas Rai, had dedicated the property to the temple. Mutation was accordingly made in the year 1956, in favour of the trust. As already mentioned, Chiranjilal Khetan died on June 4, 1956.

(3.) THE Assistant Controller observed that in the vase of Commissioner of Income-tax v. Shri Thakurji Lakshmi Nathji in which the Allahabad High Court held that the endowment created by Seth Ram Bilas Rai and others in 1919, was public religious charitable trust, no reference had been made to the properties now in dispute as belonging to the trust.