CONTROLLER OF ESTATE DUTY Vs. CHAWARE P G

JUDGEMENT

(1.) BY this reference under S. 64(1) of the ED Act, 1953, the Tribunal, Nagpur Bench, Nagpur, has referred the following question for our opinion :

(2.) THE facts giving rise to this reference are as follows : The deceased was the sole surviving coparcener of a joint Hindu family comprising himself and his wife. On his death, his widow who was the accountable person claimed that, under S. 39 of the ED Act, 1953, the interest of the deceased in the HUF property would be one half only. The Asstt. CED did not accept this contention and treated the full value of the property as having passed on the death of the deceased and taxed the value thereof in the hands of the accountable person. On appeal, the Appellate CED reversed the order of the Asstt. CED and held that the accountable person should not have been taxed in respect of the full value of the property of the HUF which consisted of the deceased and his wife. The decision of the Appellate CED was affirmed by the Tribunal. Hence, this reference at the instance of the Revenue.

(3.) FROM a reading of the aforesaid provision in S. 39(1), it is clear that, on the death of a member of an HUF, for the purpose of estate duty, only the principal value of the share of the deceased in such joint Hindu family property which would have been allotted to him, had there been a partition immediately before his death, would be taken to be the value of his interest in the joint family property ceasing on death.