SATHYANARAYAN BAGLA Vs. CONTROLLER OF ESTATE DUTY

JUDGEMENT

(1.) In this reference under Section 64(1) of the E.D. Act, 1953, the following questions have been referred to this court:

(2.) Whether, on the facts and in the circumstances of the case, the Tribunal was justified in holding that the shebaitship is a property, the value of which has to be included in the principal value of the estate left by the deceased ?

(3.) Whether, on the facts and in the circumstances of the case, the Tribunal was justified in holding that the residential portion of the Mukhram property occupied by the deceased passed on the death of the deceased and the value thereof was includible in the principal value of the estate left by the deceased ?" 2. In order to appreciate the questions before us, it is necessary to state that the dispute about the assessability under estate duty arose due to the death of one Kumargangadhar Bagla (hereinafter referred to as "the deceased") on September 20, 1964. The father of the deceased, late Raja Shew Bux Bagla, by a deed dated January 11, 1888, dedicated the properties situated at No. 41, Cotton Street, Calcutta, and Bisweswar Phatak, Varanasi, to Sri Sri Satyanarayan Jew and other deities appointing him as the sole shebait and trustee. It is instructive, to appreciate the controversy, to refer to certain parts of the said document. After reciting the necessary facts, the document provides as follows :