SHAKUNTALA KHOSLA Vs. COMMISSIONER OF WEALTH-TAX

JUDGEMENT

(1.) BECAUSE of the factual congruity and the identity of the questions of law raised therein. Civil Writ Petitions Nos. 3620 and 3621 of 1977 are proposed to be decided by a common judgment.

(2.) THE factual matrix may be taken from Civil Writ Petition No. 3621 of 1977.

(3.) SMT. Shakuntla Khosla, petitioner, filed wealth-tax returns for the assessment years 1966-67 to 1974-75, on November 5, 1974. These returns were filed beyond the period of limitation but before any notices under Section 14 (2) of the W. T. Act (" the Act" for short) were issued. The petitioner paid the tax due. She fully co-operated with the WTO during the assessment proceedings. She furnished complete details of her jewellery. She gave full particulars of each item of the jewellery. She did not conceal the particulars of any assets and did not furnish inaccurate particulars thereof. It is her case that she filed the returns in good faith and made full disclosure of her net wealth. The WTO accepted the value of the jewellery declared by the petitioner for the assessment years 1966-67 to 1972-73 with slight additions here and there. The petitioner in her return for the assessment year 1973-74 declared the value of her jewellery at Rs. 74,500 on the basis of a certificate issued by the Government approved valuer for the assessment year 1972-73. The WTO did not accept the value of the jewellery as declared by the petitioner, but valued it at a higher rate and made an addition of Rs. 27,990 to the value of jewellery for the assessment year 1973-74 and assessed the tax on that basis, vide his order dated December 30, 1974. For the assessment year 1974-75, the petitioner showed the value of jewellery as on March 31, 1974, at Rs. 74,500 on the basis of the valuation certified by the departmentally approved valuer as on March 31, 1972. The WTO, keeping in view the market price of the gold, silver et cetera as on March, 31, 1974, added Rs. 69,200 to the value of the ornaments returned by the petitioner-assessee.