COMMISSIONER OF WEALTH TAX Vs. ANWAR BEGUM

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This is an application under s. 27(3) of the WT Act, 1957, for short "the Act". The Revenue is the petitioner. It seeks a direction to the Tribunal to state the case and refer the following questions as questions of law to this Court for opinion :

(2.) For the asst. yrs. 1977-78 to 1982-83, the WTO valued the right to wear jewellery on ceremonial occasions, vested in one of the granddaughters of H.E.H. the Nizam, and accordingly assessed the same under s. 21(1) of the Act. On appeal, the CWT(A) set aside the assessment. The Revenue preferred an appeal before the Tribunal against the said order of the CWT(A). The Tribunal, following the judgment of a Division Bench of this Court in RC No. 67 of 1969, dt. 5/11/1971, held that the right to wear jewellery, however widely the expression might be interpreted, could not be considered to be "property" for the purpose of wealth-tax and thus dismissed the appeal of the Revenue on 30/05/1989. The application of the petitioner under s. 27(1) of the Act to refer the said questions to this Court, filed before the Tribunal was dismissed on 26/09/1989. On these facts, the petitioner has filed this petition.

(3.) Learned standing counsel for the petitioner submits that an identical question has been referred to the Full Bench and, therefore, this case may also be referred to the Full Bench. Sri Murali Krishna, learned counsel for the respondent, submits that the question now sought to be referred, was not one of the questions referred to the Full Bench. He further contends that the question is covered by not merely the judgment relied upon by the Tribunal, but also another judgment of this Court in CWT vs. Trustees of H.E.H. The Nizam's Wedding Gifts Trust (1995) 216 ITR 232 (AP), and, therefore, the petition is liable to be dismissed.