HARIKISAN GONDI Vs. COMMISSIONER OF INCOME TAX

JUDGEMENT

(1.) AS directed by this Court under S. 256(2) of the INCOME TAX ACT, 1961 (hereinafter referred to as " the Act "), the Tribunal, Nagpur Bench, Nagpur, has referred the following question of law to this Court for its opinion :

(2.) THE material facts giving rise to this reference briefly are as follows: The assessee is assessed to income -tax in the status of an individual. The assessment years in question are 1973 -74 and 1974 - 75. While framing the assessment for these years, the ITO disbelieved the version of the assessee that his wife had purchased a plot for an amount of Rs. 8,000 which she had received from her relations and had constructed a house thereon. The ITO held that the consideration for the purchase of the plot came from the assessee and his wife was not the real owner of the house. The ITO, therefore, treated that house as belonging to the assessee and the income arising therefrom as belonging to the assessee. Aggrieved by the order passed by the ITO, the assessee preferred an appeal before the AAC who allowed the appeal. Hence, the Revenue preferred a second appeal before the Tribunal. The Tribunal found that there was no material whatsoever for coming to the conclusion that the wife of the assessee had received Rs. 8,000 from her relations and had invested that amount in purchasing the plot. The Tribunal found that the amount invested in the purchase of the plot came from the assessee. In this view of the matter, the Tribunal allowed the appeal preferred by the Revenue. Aggrieved by the order passed by the Tribunal, the assessee sought a reference but as the application made in that behalf was rejected, the assessee submitted an application before this Court under S. 256(2) of the Act which was allowed by this Court. That is how the aforesaid question of law came to be referred to this Court.

(3.) FOR all these reasons, our answer to the question referred to this Court is in the affirmative and against the assessee. In the circumstances of the case, parties shall bear their own costs of this reference.