r959

May 4.

846 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [1959] Supp.

SAROJ KUMAR MAZUMDAR

THE COMMISSIONER OF INCOME-TAX, WEST

BENGAL, CALCUTTA. (N. H. BHAGWATI, B. P. SINHA and J. L. KAPUR, JJ.)

Income-tax-Assessment-Single transaction of purchase and sale of land-If a venture in the nature of trade or capital investment -Test-Dominant intention-Onus-Indian Income-tax Act, z922 (XI of I922), ss. 2(4), IO.

The question for decision in this appeal was whether a single transaction of sale of land measuring about three quarters of an acre was an adventure in the nature of trade so as to make it liable to income-tax. The assessee appellant, an Engineer by profession, was engaged in various business activities including that of an engineering firm but, admittedly, had no dealing, except the one in question, in respect of land. In 1946 he entered into an agreement with the Hindusthan Co-operative Insurance Society Ltd. for the purchase of the land in question and paid a sum of Rs. 32,748 in two instalments, being 25% of the estimated total price of the land. As his construction activities declined and the Government, who had requisitioned the land, were not immediately releasing it, the appellant sold his rights under the agreement to a third party in 1947 and thereby received a sum of Rs. 74,000 odd in excess of the amount paid by him to the Society. The land, however, was not released by the Government until i949. The Income-tax Officer held that the transaction v:.1as an adventure in the nature of trade and the said sum was a profit therefrom, taxable under s. IO of the Incometax Act, and included it in the assessable income. The Appellate Assistant Commissioner, in appeal, held that the assessee, a man of means, had intended to purchase the land for his own use, and that the motive of profit was entirely absent when the purchase was made and that as it was a case of appreciation of capital, he was liable to pay Capital Gains ta, x.

The Appellate Tribunal on appeal by the Department, reversed the findings and the decision of the Appellate Assistant Commissioner and affirmed that of the Income-tax Officer. After the assessee had obtained from this Court special leave to appeal, he made an application to the High Court under s. 66(2) of the Income-tax Act, which that Court dismissed as being barred by limitation.

Held, (per Bhagwati and Sinha, JJ., Kapur, J., dissenting) that admittedly the transaction in question being a single instance of its kind, and not in the line of the business of the assessee, it was for the Department to prove that the dominant intention of the appellant, when he entered into the agreement with the Society, was to embark on a venture in the nature of

r959 trade as distinguished from a capital investment, and they having failed to do so, the appeal must succeed.

Commissioners of Inland Revenue v. Reinhold, 34 T. C. 389, Saroj Kumar applied.

Mazumdar

1:here could. e o doubt,. as held by the . Court, that the Th• ca:;,.issioner question for dec1s1on mvolved m such cases was one of law or a mixed question of fact and Jaw.

G. Venkataswami Naidu and Co. v. The Commissioner of Income-tax, A.LR. 1959 S.C. 359, referred to and distinguished.

The line of demarcation, however, between an isolated transaction and a venture in the nature of trade was very thin and each case had to be decided on the total impression all its facts and circumstances made on the mind of the Judge.

Case-law reviewed.

KAPUR, J.-Even though the powers of this Court under Art. 136 of the Constitution were very wide, they had to be exercised within the limits imposed by its own decisions and one such limitation was tqat this Court would not ordinarily interfere on questions of fact. Since the question involved in the instant case was a mixed question of law and fact, the facts should properly be found by the body whose exclusive function under the Income-tax Act was to do so.

G. Venkataswami Naidu & Co. v. The Commissioner of Incometax, A.LR. 1959 S.C. 359 and Dhakeswari Cotton Mills v. The Coihmissioner of Income-tax, [1955] l S.C.R. 941, referred to.

Nor could an assessee be allowed to by-pass the procedure prescribed by ss. 66(1), 66(2) of the Income-tax Act to-have question of Jaw determined.

Since, however, the Appellate Tribunal had, in the instant case, failed to consider certain essential facts, the case should be remitted to it for a proper decision in the light of the observations made by this Court.

CIVIL

APPELLATE

JURISDICTION: Civil Appeal No. 347 of 1955.

Appeal by special leave from the judgment and. order dated March 26, 1954, of the Income-tax Appellate Tribunal, Calcutta, in Income-tax Appeal No. 5263 of 1953-54.

A. V. Viswanatha Sastri and Sukumar Ghosh, for the appellant.

0. K. Daphtary, Solicitor-General of India, R. Ganapathy, R.H. Dhebar and D. Gupta, for the respondent.

1959. May 4.

The Judgment of Bhagwati and Sinha, JJ., was delivered by Sinha, J. Kapur, J. delivered a separate Judgment.

of Income-tax,

West Bengal, Calcutta

'959 SINHA, J.-The only question for determination in this appeal by special leave, is whether the solitary Saroj J(umar

Mazumdor transaction in respect of about three quarters of an v. acre of land in the suburbs of Calcutta, was an ad ven- The Commission" ture in the nature of trade and, therefore, liable to of Income-tax, West Bengal,

Calcutta

Sinha J.

income-tax. The assessee is the appellant.

He challenges the correctness of the order of the Income-tax Appellate Tribunal, Calcutta Bench, Calcutta, dated March 26, 1954, passed in LT.A. 5263 of 1953-54, in respect of the Assessment year 1948-49, reversing that of the Appellate Assistant Commissioner of Incometax, Range "C ", Calcutta, dated September 5, 1953.

The facts of this case leading upto this appeal are as follows : The appellant is engaged in various types of business activities, being a share-holder and Director or Managing Director of several limited liability concerns, and is also a partner in the firm known as "Pioneer Engineering Works". In respect of his income during the previous two assessment years, the appellant was assessed to income-tax on the sums of Rs. 53,000/-(1946-47) and Rs. 59,000/- (1947-48).

The appellant holds investments in shares of the value of Rs. 2,45,000/-, out of which, according to the assessee, shares of-the value of Rs. 1,95,000/-, though standing in his name, belong to other members of his family, including his father and his wife.

The Hindusthan Co-operative Insurance Society Limited, of Calcutta, (hereinafter referred to as "the Society "), acquired a block of about 578 bighas of land lying between Diamond Harbour Road a'nd Tolly's N ullah, within the Municipal limits of the Corporation of Calcutta, between the years 1940 and 1942. The Society decided to level the land thus acquired and to open out roads and after developing the same, it subdivided it into small plots and sites in different blocks suitable for residential purposes under its scheme called "The New Alipore Land Development Scheme No. XV ". The Society offered such plots for sale. One such plot, being plot No. 77 in block " E " of the said Scheme, was agreed, by an agreement dated January 10, 1946, to be sold to the assessee at the rate of Rs. 2,550 /- per katha. In pursuance of the said agreement, the assessee paid to the Society, a sum of

Rs. 13,099/- being 10% of the estimated price of the x959 plot with an approximate area of 51 kathas, which Saro} Kumar subsequently, on exact measurement, was found to Mazunidar be 45·56 kathas.

Subsequently, on the acceptance v, of his offer, the appellant paid another sum ofThe Commissioner Rs. 19,649 (omitting annas), being 15% of the estimatof Income-tax, ed price. Thus, in all, a sum of Rs. 32,748/- being West Bengal, 25% of the estimated total price of the land, was Calcutta paid by the assessee to. th'tl Society.

All this area Sinha 1. which the Society had undertaken to develop and sell to different purchasers in small plots, was in occupation of the Government, which had requisitioned it for purposes connected with the prosecution of the Second World War. Hence, one of the terms of the transaction between the assessee and the Society, was that the transaction of purchase would be completed within six months of the lands being released from Government occupation. It was further stipulated that the assessee would be entitled to apply, within three months of the receipt of the notice of de-requisition, for extension of time not exceeding one year, for the completion of the transaction on the condition that he paid interest at the rate of 7% per annum on the outstanding amount, during the extended period. If the assessee, as purchaser, paid to the Society another sum which, together with Rs. 32,748/-, already paid, would amount to 50% of the total price of the plot in question (within six months of the notice of de-requisition), he could get a conveyance of the property on his executing an English Mortgage for the remaining 50% of the price carrying interest at the rate of 7%, on the expiry of these aforesaid six months.

As there was an apprehension that the Government might acquire the whole property for its own purpose, it was further stipulated that in the event of such an acquisition by Government, the agreement for sale would stand rescinded, and the assessee, in that event, would be entitled to re-payment of the amounts paid by him to the Society by way of advance for the completion of the transaction. The assessee's case is that as the terms of the payment of purchase-price in several instalments, as aforesaid, were convenient to him,

L07

z959 he agreed to take the plot on the conditions aforesaid, with a view to building a residential house for himself Saroj Kuniar d • k h · h h' Mazumdar an constructmg a wor s op m connection wit 1s v. business activity.

At the end of the Second World The Commissioner War, the assessee's construction activities began to of Incomet•>. decline, and there was no immediate prospect of the

West Bengal, land in question being de-requisitioned by Government.

Calcutta I th h d c h n ose mrcumstances, t e assessee negotiate 1or t e Sinha J. assignment of his rights under the agreement with the Society, to Rani Yuddha Rajya Devi of Nepal. The Itani appeared to have taken a fancy to the plot and to have made an attractive offer to the appellant.

Hence, after exchange of letters between the parties, it was agreed between them that a sum of Rs. 1,07;000 odd would be deposited by the Rani with the assessee on suspense account until the transaction of sale between the Society as the vendor and the Rani or her nominee, as the vendee, would be executed and the transaction of purchase finalised upon her undertaking

- to pay the sum of Rs. 98,000 odd to the Society, which was the outstanding amount of the sale-price in respect of the plot agreed by the assessee to be purchased by him from the Society. After a good deal of correspondence, on December 27, ,1950, the Society executed a deed of conveyance in respect of the said plot, to the daughter of the said Rani as the vendee. The aforesaid vendee executed a deed of mortgage in favour of the Society for the outstanding amount of Rs. 50,900/-, after payment of Rs. 32,700 odd to the Society. In the result, the assessee received, on April 3, 194 7, a sum of Rs. 1,07,000 odd from the Rani, in pursuance of the agreement between her and the assessee.

Until the execution of the sale-deed between the Society and the Rani's nominee, as aforesaid, the assessee continued to be liable to the Society in respect of the agreement of January 10, 1946. The assessee, thus, received from the Rani a sum of Rs. 74,000 odd in excess of the amount paid by him to the Society. The property, including the plot in question, was not de-requisitioned until some time in 1949.

In respect of the assessment year 1948-49, the assessee filed a return of his income to the Income-tax

Department, showing a loss of Rs. 2,000 odd for the . x959 financial year 194 7-48. In pursuance of the notice Saroj Kumar under s. 23(2) of the Income-tax Act, the assessee ap- Mazumdar peared before the Income-tax Officer, Calcutta, and v. produced all his books of account, including his bank The Commissioner accounts. The Income-tax Officer, on an examination of Income-tax, of the accounts and after questioning the assessee West Bengal, h ' l . h h ' Calcutta came to t e cone usion t at t e assessee had made a profit of Rs. 74,000 odd from the transaction in ques- Sinha J. tion, which, according to him, was an adventure in the nature of trade. Hence, on an examination of the assessee's accounts, the Income-tax Officer included the sum of Rs. 74,485/- as profit from an "adventure in the nature of trade "-taxable under s. 10 of the Income-tax Act-as one of the items of income accrued to the assessee during the assessment year 1948-49.

The assessee went up in appeal to the Appellate Assistant Commissioner of Income-tax, and challenged the conelusioh of the Income-tax Officer that the sum of Rs. 74,000 odd was profit from an adventure in the nature of trade. It was also taken as one of the grounds of appeal by him that in any event, the receipt accrued to the assessee only in 1950, after the transaction of sale had been completed as between the Rani's nominee and the Society. The Appellate Assistant Commissioner did not agree with the Income-tax Officer that the assessee was not in a position either to complete the transaction of purchase by paying the full amount of consideration, or to erect a building thereon, or to use the land in any ot, her way. He pointed out that under the Scheme, the Society had offered terms of purchase on instalments and on execution of a mortgage in respect of the vended property to the extent of 50% of the consideration money. He also pointed out that the assessee had considerable investments to the extent of Rs. 2,45,000/- in shares of different limited concerns. He, therefore, came to the conclusion that the assessee was a man of means, and that it could not be said that he had not intended to purchase the plot for his own use.

He further held that the motive of making a profit at the time of the purchase, had not been established by the Department,

'959 and that it was a " solitary transaction ".

On these findings, he found himself unable to confirm the Saroj [( uniar

Mazumdar finding of the Income-tax Officer that the profit was v. from an adventure in the nature of trade.

He took The Commission" the view that the appellant had made an investment of Inoome tax, which had appreciated considerably in value, and that West , s-•gal, it was undoubtedly a case of appreciation of capital. ca cutta Treating it as a "Capital Gain", he came to the con-

Sinha 1. clusion that as the payment had been made in 1947, the gain accrued in that year and not in the year 1950, as contended on behalf of the assessee. In the result, he made him liable to pay Capital Gains tax.

The Department went up in appeal to the Incometax Appellate Tribunal, which, by its judgment dated March 26, 1954, allowed the appeal. The Tribunal pointed out that the assessee was not a man of such large means as to think of acquiring the plot for his own residential or business purposes. The admitted shares worth Rs. 2,45,000/- standing in his name, the Tribunal pointed out, were held by the assessee, in respect of the major portion, on behalf of other members of his family.

The Tribunal also observed that Rs. 32,748/- paid hy the assessee to the Society had been paid out of borrowed money. This conclusion does not appear to have been well-founded in fact. The accounts do show credits in favour of the assessee of a larger amount. The Tribunal also pointed out that undoubtedly the "assessee is a keen businessman and has a number of varied business interests. Admittedly, he is a director of about a dozen concerns and managing director of two or three.

He is -/8/- annas partner in an Engineering concern which is carrying out a number of construction and other contract works. He is an Engineer by profession and a resident of Calcutta." The Tribunal based its conclusion that the sale was an adventure in the nature of trade, and that the profits, thus made, were assessable to income-tax, on the following grounds:-

1. That the payment by the assessee to the Cooperative Society, of Rs. 32,748/-, came out of a loan taken for the purpose from a company (which conclusion, as already pointed out, is not borne out by the entries in the books of account of that company);

2. That the assessee could not have paid the c959 balance of Rs. 98,000 odd, the outstanding amount of Saroj I< umar the purchase.money, to the Insurance Company; Mazumdar

3. That the assessee had no means to construct a v. house on the land, and lastly, The Co1nmissioncr

4. That the site itself fetched no income, thus, of Income-tax, showing that it could not be an investment but only West Bengal, Calcutta an excursion into the realm of trade.

Against this decision of the Appellate Tribunal, the Sinha 1. assessee moved this Court and obtained special leave to appeal.

Before we deal with the main question in controversy in this appeal, we would like to make some general remarks on the nature of the questions involved in this case. It is not disputed on behalf of the respondent that the question now before us, is a question of law, or a mixed question of fact and law, as has been recently laid down by this Court in the case of G. Venkataswami Naidu and Go. v. The Commissioner of Income-tax (1).

Speaking for the Court, Gajendragadkar, J., after a detailed discussion of the decisions of this Court M eenakshi Mills, Madurai v. Commissioner of Income-tax, Madras (2) and The Oriental lnvestmi;, nt Go., Ltd. v. Commissioner of Income-tax, Bombay (3), and of the House of Lords, in Edwards v.

Bairstow (4), came to the conclusion that the question arising in the case, is a mixed question of law and fact, and, therefore, open to examination by this Court. In G. V enkataswami N aid11, and Go. v. The Commissioner of Income-tax (supra), the question raised, was exactly similar to the question now before us, though in a different setting of facts. His conclusion may be stated in his own words as follows :-

"In other words, in reaching the conclusion that the transaction is an adventure in the nature of trade, the tribunal has to find primary evidentiary facts and then apply the legal principles involved in the expression "adventure in the nature of trade" used by s. 2, sub-s. (4). It is patent that the clause 'in the nature of trade' postulates the existence of certain elements in

(1) A.I.R. 1959 S.C. 359.

(2) [1956] S.C.R. 691;

(3) [1958] S.C.R. 49'.

(4) 36 T.C. 207 •

'959 the adventure which in Jaw would invest it with the character of a trade or business; and that would make Saroj J(u1nar

Mazumda, the question and its decision one of mixed law and v. fact."

The Commission" In that view of the matter, this Court further pointo/ Ineometax, ed out that the more proper form of the question is

~Vest Bengal,

Caleutta "whether, on the facts and circumstances proved in the case, the inference that the transaction in question Sinha J. is an adventure in the nature of trade is in Jaw justified." The recent decision of this Court has examined almost all the relevant cases decided in Indian as also English and Scotch Courts, and thus, our task in the present case, has been very much simplified. It has further been observed in that case, more than once, that judicial opinion was unanimous that no general principles or universal tests could be laid down, which could govern the decision of all cases in which the question for determination is similar to the one now before us.

Each case must be determined on the total impression created on the mind of the Court by all the facts and circumstances disclosed in that particular case. Hence, no decided case can, strictly speaking, be a precedent which could govern the decision of a later case, involving a similar question. Those decisions can be used only by way of illustrations of the different view-points which have a bearing on the decision of the case in hand. It has also not been disputed that in a case .where a transaction under examination, is not in the line of the business of the assessee, and is an isolated or a single instance of a transaction like that, the burden lies on the Revenue to bring the case within the words of the statute, namely, that it was an adventure in the nature of trade. That the onus is on the Department, has been clearly laid down by Lord Garmount in the case of Commissioners of Inland Revenue v. Reinhold('). That was a case in which the respondent, the assessee, was a director of a company carrying on the business of Warehousemen, and had bought four houses in January, 1945, and sold them at a profit in December, 1947.

He admitted that he had bought the property with a

(I) 34 T. C. 389, 393

view to resale, and had instructed his agents to sell x959 the same whenever a suitable purchaser was forth- Saroj Humar coming. The assessee was made liable for tax in Mazumdar respect of the profit made by him on the resale.

On v. an appeal by the assessee before the General Commis- The Commissioner sioners, it was contended on his behalf that "the profit of Income-ta:i, on the resale was not taxable. On behalf of the Crown, West Bengal, . d d h h t . f h d Calcutta 1t was conten e t at t e ransact10n o pure ase an sale in question, constituted an adventure in the nature Sinha J. of trade, and that, therefore, the profits arising out of the transaction, were chargeable to income-tax. The General Commissioners, being eqally divided, allowed the appeal. It was held by the Court of Session (First Division) that the fact that the property was purchased with a view to resale, did not, of itself, establish that the transaction was an adventure in the nature of trade, and that, therefore, the determination by the Commissioners was justifiable in law. The Court, in• coming to that conclusion, took into account the considerations that the respondent was'not a property agent, and that his business was not, in any way, associated with the purchase and sale of estates. It was an isolated transaction, even though the assessee had purchased a hotel and sold it again ten years previously. The Court made a reference to the following observations of Lord Buckmaster in the case of Leeming v. Jones (1):-

" ............ an accretion to capital does not become income merely because the original capital was invested in the hope and expectation that it would rise in value ; if it does so rise, its realization does not make it income."

Placing that decision along-side of the present case, let us see what its salient features are. Though the appellant is engaged in various types of business as a share-holder or a director in limited liability concerns, as also in building contracts, dealing in landed estates is not in the line of his business. If such a transaction were in the line of his business, it would not matter much whether, in the assessment year, he had several such transactions or only one. Even a single

(I) (1930) .A. C. 415, 420,

r959 transaction of dealing in landed estates, being a part of his business, would be liable to income-tax, if a Saroj J(umar fi . d h Mazumdar pro t lS ma e in t at transaction.

But, admittedly, v. the transaction in question is the only one of its kind, The Commissioner out of which the appellant has made a considerable of Income-tax, profit wliich appears to have been in the nature of a

West Bengal, windfall. 'Vhen he entered into the agreement with Calcutta the Society for the purchase of the plot, in January,

Sinha 1. 1946, he had expected that at the end of the W or Id War, the Government would release the property from its requisition, and that the Society witl develop the land by laying the necessary roads and providing other amenities to the plot-holders. But as the Government did not release the property, and as the appellant was a businessman, who was interested in return from his capital, and as he had already paid Rs. 32,000 odd by way of advance towards the pur- • chase price, and as in 1947, at the end of the Second World War, his business in contracts for building constructions, beg'an to decline, he, naturally, thought of making the bet of the bargain. If he did not get out of the transaction, his financial difficulties in meeting his further liabilities under the agreement, as a result of slump in his main line of business, might lead to the forfeiture of the advance of Rs. 32,000 odd, he would naturally be on the lookout for a good purchaser. He was lucky to find a lady with a lot of money to spare, who had, as he alleged, taken a fancy to the plot in question.

Thus, he could assign to her the benefit of his agreement with the Society on terms which were highly profitable to him.

There is no clear evidence in support of the inference of the Appellate Tribunal that the land was purchased with the sole intention of selling it later at a profit. The Tribunal considered two alternatives in relation to this transaction-one, that the land was purchased in order to build a residential house, and the second, that it was purchased in hope of selling it later for a profit. The first alternative, the Tribunal rejected on the ground that" he does not seem to have very much of means at his disposal." That itself is a statement which does not bear close scrutiny. During the two years previous to the year under assessment, the appellant had

been assessed to income-tax on Rs. 53,000/- and z959 Rs. 59,000/-, as already indicated. That does not lend Saroj Kumar countenance to the surmise that the appellant was not Mazumdar a man of means. Admittedly, he held marketable v. shares of the value of about 2§- lacs of rupees, though The Commissioner

all those shares standing in his name, were not claimed of Income-tax, by him as his own.

Apparently, he was carrying on West Bengal, l t • b , d . h . d' l d' Calcutta a ucra ive usmess urmg t e imme 1ate y prece mg years. It is true that in the year of assessment, on his Sinha J. own showing in his income-tax return, he had suffered a loss, but that may have been a turning point in his fortunes, and that would not necessarily lead to the inference that he was not in a sound financial position on the date of the agreement with the Society. It may be that his hopes of flourishing in his business in the years to come, were not realized after the conclusion of the Second World War. But even assuming that the Tribunal was right in its conclusion as to the second alternative, namely, that the purchase was made in the hope of making a profit after re-sale, the matter is not concluded. In this connection, a reference may be made again to the decision in Commissioners of Inland Revenue v. Reinhold (supra), at p. 392, where it was argued on behalf of the Revenue that a profit made in a transaction which was in the nature of an investment in the hope and expectation of a rise in price, may be an accretion of capital, but that if at the time of the purchase, the purchaser had resolved to sell the property in the event of a profit being made, and instructions had been issued to his agents accordingly, the transaction could not have been treated as an investment, but was truly an adventure in the nature of trade, and the profit thus made, must be treated as income. This argument was not accepted as valid. In that connection, reference was made to the following observations of Lord Dunedin, in the case of Jones v. Leeming (1) :-

" ............ The fact that a man does not mean to hold an investment may be an item of evidence tending to show whether he is carrying on a trade or

(r) (1930) A.C. 415, p. 423. roS

'959 concern in the nature of trade in respect of his invest-

Saroj Rumar ments, but per se it leads to no conclusion whatever." Mazumdar The decision of the House of Lords in the case aforev. said, which is also reported in 15 T. C. 333, is rather ins- The Commfasioner tructive. In that case, the appellant was a member of Income-tax, of a syndicate of four persons, formed to acquire an West Bengal t' bb t t 'th 11' Calcutt• • op 10n over a ru . er es a e, w1 a view to se mg at a profit. The opt10n was secured, but the estate was Sinha J. considered to be too small for re-sale. An option over another joint estate was accordingly secured, and it was decided to resell the two estates to a public company to be formed for the purpose. Another member of the syndicate undertook to arrange for promotion of the company. The syndicate's rights were transferred to a company. This company floated another company to which the properties were sold.

The syndicate's profits were divided between the members, and the appellant, as one of the members of the syndicate, was assessed to income-tax in respect of his shares of the profits. The General Commissioners, on appeal, were of the opinion that the interest in the property in question had been acquired with the sole object of making a profit, and that there was no intention of holding it as an investment. Hence, the assessment to income-tax was affirmed.

The King's Bench Division, at the first hearing, remitted the case to the General Commissioners for a finding as to whether there was a concern in the nature of trade, and the Commissioners found that the transaction was not such a concern. It was held by the House of Lords that the profits were not liable to tax on the basis that they were income from an adventure in the nature of trade. Viscount Dunedin, in the course of his opinion, referred, with apparent approval, to the dictum in Ryall v. N oare (' ), to the following effect :

" A casual profit made on an isolated purchase and sale, unless merged with similar transactions in the carrying on of a trade or business is not liable to tax." He also approved of the following dictum of Lawrence, L. J., in the case of Leeming v. Jones (2) :-

(1) (1923) 2 K. B. 447, 454.

(2) (1930) 1 K.B. 279, 302.

"It seems to me in the case of an isolated transaction of purchase and re-sale of property there is really

I959

Saroj K uma• no middle course open. It is either an adventure in Mazttmdar the nature of trade, or else it is simply a case of sale v. and re-sale of property." The Commissione• Lord Warrington of Clyffe, in the course of his of Income-tax, . . f J L . l) d h West Bengal, opmwn in the case o ones v. eeming ( , ma et e Calcutta following observations, which apply with full force to the facts and circumstances of the present case:-

"Here we have a case of the acquisition of an item of property and a profit made by the transfer thereof to .another. In this I can find nothing but a profit arising from an accretion in value of the item of property in question and the realization of such enhanced value. There is in this nothing in the nature of revenue or income. The fact that the parties intended from the first to make a profit if they could does not in my opinion affect the question we have to determine."

As already indicated, the line of demarcation between cases of isolated transactions of purchase and sale being ventures in the nature of trade, and those which are not such ventures, if any, is very thin.

The cases in which single transactions have been held not to belong to the class of ventures in the nature of trade, have been noticed above, and the considerations which lecf those courts to hold that such ventures were not liable to income-tax, apply to the case in hand. On the other side of the line, there is a series of cases in which single transactions have been held to have been ventures in the nature of trade, for reasons which do not apply to the present case.

We may notice some of the typical cases which illustrate the reasons for which a single transaction was brought within the ambit of a venture in the nature of trade.

The case of Californian Copper Syndicate (Limited and Reduced) v. Harris (Surveyor of Taxes) (2), related to the purchase and sale of a mining property. In that case, a company had been formed for the purpose, inter alia, of acquiring and re-selling a mining property. That company acquired some mining property

(r) (1930) A.G. 415, 425.

(2) 5 T.C. 159

Sinha J,

'959 and sold the same to a second company, consideration for the sale being paid-up shares of the latter company.

Saroj Kumar f Mazitmdar It was held by the Court o Exchequer (Scotland) v.

Second Division, that the difference between the pur- The Commissioner chase price and the value of shares for which the proof Iucome-tax, perty was exchanged was a profit assessable to incomew"' Bengal, tax. It was pointed out by the Court that the case in- Calcutta volved a deal which was a "proper trading transaction,

Sinha J. one within the Company's power under their Articles, and contemplated as well as authorised by their Articles". The ratio of the decision in that case appears to have been that though it was a single transaction in which profit was made, it was an adventure in the nature of trade, being in the line of the business adopted by the company. The next case of Martin

v. Lowry (1) is another instance of a single transaction of purchase of property being treated as a venture in the nature of trade, on account of the very nature and magnitude of the commodity dealt in by a person whose usual line of business was wholly outside the scope of the new venture. That was a case in which a wholesale agricultural machinery merchant, who never had any dealings in linen trade, purchased from the Government its surplus stock of aeroplane linen (some 44 million yards). In order to dispose of this huge stock of linen purchased by him, the assessee embarked upon an extensive advertising campaign, rented offices and engaged expert staff to organize the sales.

The number of transactions of sale of that huge stock of linen, ran into thousands. The House of Lords affirmed the determination of the courts below, holding that the transaction amounted to the carrying on of a trade of which the profits were chargeable to income-tax and Excess Profits Duty. Another case in the same volume, is The Commissioners of Inland Revenue v. Livingston and others (2). In that case, the persons sought to be taxed were, a ship repairer, a blacksmith and a fish salesman's employee, who joined in the venture of purchasing a cargo vessel with a view to converting it into a steam-drifter, and selling it. That was a new line of .business for them.

(1) II T.C. 297.

(2) II T.C. 538.

Extensive repairs and alterations to the ship were r959 carried out, and the result was a sale of the converted 1 fi I h ld b h .

Saroj Kumar vesse at a pro t. twas e t at t e transact10n, Mazumdar though an isolated one, was a venture in the nature v. of trade, and thus, liable to income-tax. The ratio of The Commissioner the decision was stated in the following words of•the of Income-tax, Lord President :- West Bengal, f • 1 • Calcutta " I the venture was one consIStmg s1mp y m an isolated purchase of some article against an expected Sinha 1. rise in price and a subsequent sale it might be impossible to say that the venture was 'in the nature of trade '; because the only trade in the nature of which it could participate would be the trade of a dealer in such articles, and a single transaction falls as far short of constituting a dealer's trade, as the appearance of a single swallow does of making a summer.

The trade of a dealer necessarily consists of a course of dealing, either actually engaged in or at any rate contemplated and intended to continue." The case of Rutledge v. The Commissioners of Inland Revenue (1), is another illustration of a case in which a single transaction of purchase and sale, was held to be an adventure in the nature of trade for the reason that the commodity purchased was of such a nature and of such a vast magnitude that it could not have possibly been intended for the consumption of the purchaser himself or his family. In that case, the assessee was a money-lender who was also interested in a cinema company. In the interest of his cinema business, he happened to be in Berlin, and there took the opportunity of purchasing, for a very cheap price, a very large quantity (one million rolls) of toilet paperfor £1,000-and realised £12,000 by sale of that com modity. He was taxed on the nett profit of £10,895.

It was held by the Court of Session, Scotland (First Division), that it was certainly an adventure, because the assessee made himself liable for the purchase of that vast quantity of toilet paper, obviously for no other conceivable purpose than that of re-selling it for a large profit.

As regards the question whether the adventure was in the nature of trade, it was contended

(r) 14 T.C. 490.

r959 on behalf of the assessee that it was essential to the idea of trade that there should be a continuous series Saroj J{umar f d .

Mazumda. o tra ing operat10ns.

The Court rightly pointed out v. that the question was not whether it was a trade but The Cammi.'5iouer whether it was a venture in the nature of trade. of Income-tax, Hece, though the single transaction of purchase and West Bengal, sale, may not have amounted to what is ordinarily Calcutta d d b d th f f un erstoo y tra e m e sense o a series o transac- Sinha 1. tions, it was certainly a venture in the nature of trade, because from the very beginning, the intention was manifest that the purchase was made not with a view to utilizing the commodity for the personal use of the purchaser, but with a view to making profit by a resale, which was apparent from the very nature and magnitude of the commodity purchased. Another illustration of the same rule is to be found in the case of The Balgouniie Land Trust, Ltd. v. The Commissioners of Inland Revenue (1). That was the case of a landed estate which was left by the owner to trustees with a direction to sell it. The trustees, being unsuccessful in their efforts to sell the estate, formed a company with general powers to deal in real property, and transferred the estate to this company. The company made certain other purchases of property by way of accretions to the original estate. The property was sold in parts during the years 1921, 1924, 1926 and 1927. The company was assessed to income-tax for the profits from the sales of those lands. The Court, confirming the assessment of the company to income-tax on the profits made on those sales, held that the company was doing precisely what it meant to do, namely, carrying on business of a company. dealing in a real estate. The case of Commissioners of Inland Revenue v. Fraser (2), is another illustration of the rule that if a person enters into a single transaction outside his ordinary avocation of life, with the sole object of making a profit by re-sale, it may amount to an adventure in the' nature of trade. In that case, a wood-cutter bought, for re-sale, whisky in large quantities, and without taking delivery of the whisky, sold it at a profit. It was the assessee's sole

(r) 14 T.C. 684.

(2) 24 T.C. 498.

dealing in 'Yhisky, but a.11 the same, it was held to be r959 liable to income-tax on the ground that the nature of h h c Saroj Kumar t e transaction, wit re1erence to the commodity Mazumdar dealt in in large quantities, which would not ordinarily v. be meant for personal or family consumption, may The Commissioner indicate that it was an adventure in the nature of of Income-tax,

trade.

West Bengal.

We have set out the illustrative cases on the two Calcutta sides of the thin line of demarcation that may possibly Sinha 1. be said to distinguish one class of case from the other. ' The question still remains, on which side of the line, the present case should be placed ? The learned Solicitor-General placed strong reliance on the recent decision of this Court in G. Venkataswami Naidu & Co. v.

The Commissioner of Income-tax (supra). The question, therefore, is whether the present case falls on the same side of the line as the recent decision of this Court, which had to deal with a similar question, as already indicated. In that case, the assessee had purchased four plots under four different deeds. During the time that the assessee was in possession of those plots, he made no efforts to put up any structures, or to utilize them in other ways. The assessee was in a fiduciary position with the Mills contiguous to which the plots purchased, were; and it was also found that the assessee was in a position to influence the Mills to purchase those plots at a price favourable to him. It was ih that setting of the facts, that this Court made the following observations:-

"Whens. 2, sub-s. (4) refers to an adventure in the nature of trade it clearly suggests that the transaction cannot properly be regarded as trade or business.

It is allied to transactions that constitute trade or business but may not be trade or business itself. It is characterized by some of the essential features thatmake up trade or business but not by all of them; and so, even an isolated transaction can satisfy the description of an adventure in the nature of trade."

Can it be said, in the setting of the facts and circumstances of the present case, set out above, that the transaction in question has such characteristics as

I959 to point to the conclusion that it was a venture in the nature of trade ? It was suggested that the area of the Saroj J(umar d 1 h f Mazumdar Ian in question, name y, t ree quarters o an acre. in v. the suburbs of Calcutta, was large enough to indicate The Commissioner that the assessee would not have intended to take it of Income-tax, for his own use and occupation. In the first place,

w"' Bengal, the area is not so large as to lead necessarily to the . Calcutta inference that it could not have been meant to be used Sinha J. by him in the way of his business or for his own residence.

Certainly, the Society, having acquired more than 5QO bighas of land in a lot, could not claim that the land was meant for its own use. On the other side, it was meant to be developed into small building sites, as they actually did. But the Society had, without developing the area, sub-divided it into building sites, one of which was sought to be acquired by the appellant. He was carrying on an engineering concern, and it is not, therefore, unlikely that he may have intended,. as he alleged, to put up a small workshop on a portion of the land to be acquired, and to build his own residential house on the other portion. It was not suggested that the appellant had his own house in Calcutta, and was, therefore, not in need of a building site. At the time he entered into the agreement of purchase with the Society, he was doing good business, as is shown by the large amounts on which he was assessed to income-tax. It was not unnatural for him to look forward to continue his business in as prosperous a way as he had been doing in the recent past, and thus, to raise sufficient funds to build his own residential house, or to construct a workshop for his own engineering business.

Hence, the possibility or the probability that the site may appreciate in value, would not necessarily lend itself to the inference that the transaction was a venture in the nature of trade, as distinguished from a capital investment. In all the circumstances of this case, the total impression created on our mind, is that it has not been made out by the Department that the dominant intention of the appellant was to embark on a venture in the nature of trade, when he entered into the agreement which resulted in the profits sought to be taxed.

For the aforesaid reasons, we would allow this z959 appeal, and s1it aside the orders of the Tribunal below with costs.

Saroj Kumar Mazumdar KAPUR, J.-I regret I am unable to agree that v ... the appeal in the present case should be allowed The Commissioner

d h 0 h £ h. h of Income-tax an my reasons are t ese: n t e acts w IC were West Bengal.' proved the Income-tax Appellate Tribunal came Calcutta to the conclusion that the purchase of land by the appellant was an adventure in the nature of trade and Kapur f. profit arising therefrom was assessable to income-tax.

In coming to this conclusion the Appellate Tr-ibunal took into consideration certain facts; (1) that the only payment the appellant made for the purchase of the land was of a sum of Rs. 32,748 which he borrowed from his company and he was not in a position to pay the balance of Rs. 98,246; (2) the appellant had no money available at all to pay the part of the purchase price of Rs. 1,30,994 and he had no means to construct the house; (3) that his financial resources were such as not to justify the purchase of the plot of land for the construction of a house; (4) the site itself fetched no income but it was a kind of investment with the hope of making a profit out of it and the land was purchased only for the purpose of sale; (5) that the appellant being a keen businessman had intimate know ledge of the trend of the rise in prices of land and therefore the purpose for which he made the purchase was in order to make profit and not merely an investment.

As against these circumstances various facts were brought to our notice which it has argued militate against the findings of the Tribunal: (1) that the appellant.was carrying on an engineering concern and therefore it was not unlikely that he intended, as he alleged, to put up a small workshop on that portion of land; (2) that the appellant did not have his own house in Calcutta and therefore he could have been in need of a piece of land on which he could build a house and (3) that at the time he entered into an agreement of purchase he had a prosperous business which is shown by the amount of income-tax which he paid for

I959 two years and he could legitimately expect that his business would continue to remain prospous; (4) that Sa1'oj J{umar f l l d h Mazumdar these acts cou d not ea to t e necessary conv. sequence that the transaction was a venture in the The Commission" nature of trade and that it was not the dominant of Income-tax. intention of the appellant at the time when he entered West Bengal, into the transact.ion to embark upon a venture in the Calcutla nature of trade.

Kapur.].

Under the Income-tax law it is the exclusive func-, tion of the Appellate Tribunal to find facts.

Even though the powers of this Court under Art. 136 are very wide yet they have to be exercised within the limits imposed by the decisions of this Court and one such limitation is that this Court will not ordinarily interfere with findings of fact. It has been held by this Court that the question whether an adventure is in the nature of a trade or not is a mixed question of law and fact.

The facts have to be found by the fact-finding authority and to those facts the law has to be applied and whenever it is necessary to get a correct finding on a question of fact it is the factfinding authority which is called upon to consider the evidence and give its finding. (See G. Venkataswami Naidu & Co. v. The Commissioner of Income-tax (1)).

Therefore if there arose a question of law out of the order of the Appellate Tribunal then the appellant could have had the case stated to the High Court under s. 66(1) and if the Appellate Tribunal refused to state the case it was open to the appellant to have the case stated under s. 66(2) of the Indian Income. tax Act. No doubt he did make an application to the Appellate Tribunal to state the case under s. 66(1) but he did not make any application to the High Court till 1957, after he had obtained speciaUeave in this Court and the High Court dismissed the petition on the ground that it was barred by time.

The position comes to this that the tribunal refused to state the case under s. 66(1) of the Income-tax Act and the appellant did not apply to the High Court under s. 66(2) till long after the period of limitation had expired. In the circumstances the courses open to this

(1) A.l.R. f1959) S.C. 359.

Court would be (1) to set aside the order of the Appel-

I959 late Tribunal and remit the case to the Tribunal for Saroj J<umar decision in accordance with the observations made by Mazumdar this Court as was done in the case of Omar Saly v.

Mohammed Sait v. The Commissioner of Income-tax (1) The Commissioner or it may be open to this Court to direct a reference as 01 Income-tax, was done in Jagta Coal Company v. The Commissioner West JJengal, of Income-tax (2).

Then in Dhakeswari Cotton .Mills v.

Calcu:ta The Commissioner of Income-tax (3) this Court only Kapur J. remitted the case to the Appellate Tribunal to proceed in accordance with law on the ground that certain principles of natural justice bad been violated and the assessee was not given an opportunity to rebut the evidence against him.

The Income-tax law bas prescribed a procedure to have questions of law determined and an assessee cannot byepass .the various steps prescribed under that law. The position therefore comei; to this that if there is no evidence to support the finding the question is one of law which would fall under ss. 66(1) and 66(2) of the Income-tax Act; (2) ifin giving its finding the Appellate Tribunal disregards certain pieces of evidence or proceeds in a manner which is violative of natural justice the finding will be vitiated but if there is evidence to support the finding of fact and these findings are properly arrived at then it will be a pure question of fact which this Court will not ordinarily interfere with; (3) if there is an error of law arising as above or because of misinterpretation of the Income-tax law then the case has to be stated to the High Court in the manner provided in the Income-tax Act and if the assessee does not choose to follow the procedure prescribed then he cannot come to this Court disregarding the remedy provided by the Income-tax law and (4) the legal effect of facts found where the point for determination is a mixed question of law and fact would fall under s. 66(1) & (2) of the Income-tax Act. (See G. Venkataswami Naidu & Co. v. The Commis sioner of Income-tax (4) ).

This is a case in which certain essential facts have

(1) C.A. No. 15 of 1958.

(3) [1955] l S.C.R. 94r.

(2) C. A. No. 337 of 1956.

(4) A.I.R. (1959) S.C. 359.

x959 not been considered by the Appellate Tribunal and . therefore it is a case which should be remitted to the Saroj I<uniaY

Mazumdar Income-tax Appellate Tribunal to determine the facts

v. in accorda.nce with the observations made by this The Commission" Court and in the light of those findings to determine

0! Income-tax, whether the transaction was an adventure in the

West Bengal, nature of a trade or not. ~~~ .

Kapur],

I959 •

May 5.

I would order accordmgly.

ORDER OF THE COURT In view of the opinion of the majority, the appeal is allowed with costs.

COMMISSIONER OF INCOME-TAX; BIHAR &

ORISSA

M/S. PATNEY & CO.

(B. P. SINHA, J. L. KAPUR and M. liIDAYATULLAH, JJ.)

Income-tax - Assessment on non-resident-Agree1nent with resident debtor for payment outside British India-Remittance by cheques posted in British India--Place of payment-Non-resident's liability to tax.

The respondents, Vl'ho were non-residents carrying on business at Secunderabad within the territories of the Nizam of Hyderabad, were acting as agents of two firms in Bombay and Madurai, in British India, for the supply of certain goods to the Nizam's Government.

In respect of the Commission due to the respondents by the firms the agreement between the parties was that the amounts were to be paid to the respondents in cash or by cheques at Secunderabad. For these amounts cheques drawn.by the firms on the Bombay and Madras branches, respectively, of the Imperial Bank of India, were sent by post at Bombay and Madurai to the respondents at Secunderabad, and when received, they were credited in their books of account, the cheques being sent to their banker there for collecting and crediting to their account.

For the assessment year 1945-1946 the Income-tax Officer, Berhampnr (in British India), assessed these sums as taxable income holding that the amount was received in British

SAROJ KUMAR MAZUMDAR

B. P. SINHA

L. KAPUR, JJ.

Income-tax Act

ss. 2(4)

IO of the Incometax Act

s. 66(2)

Income-tax Act

Art. 136

Income-tax Act

ss. 66(1), 66(2)

Income-tax Act

s. 23(2)

Income-tax Act

s. 10

Income-tax Act

s. 2

Art. 136

s. 66(1)

s. 66(2)

s. 66(1)

s. 66(1)

Income-tax Act

s. 66(2)

ss. 66(1) and 66(2)

Income-tax Act

Income-tax Act

s. 66(1)

Income-tax Act


868 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [1959] Supp.

x959 not been considered by the Appellate Tribunal and . therefore it is a case which should be remitted to the Saroj I<uniaY

Mazumdar Income-tax Appellate Tribunal to determine the facts

v. in accorda.nce with the observations made by this The Commission" Court and in the light of those findings to determine

0! Income-tax, whether the transaction was an adventure in the

West Bengal, nature of a trade or not. ~~~ .

Kapur],

I959 •

May 5.

I would order accordmgly.

ORDER OF THE COURT In view of the opinion of the majority, the appeal is allowed with costs.

COMMISSIONER OF INCOME-TAX; BIHAR &

ORISSA

M/S. PATNEY & CO.

(B. P. SINHA, J. L. KAPUR and M. liIDAYATULLAH, JJ.)

Income-tax - Assessment on non-resident-Agree1nent with resident debtor for payment outside British India-Remittance by cheques posted in British India--Place of payment-Non-resident's liability to tax.

The respondents, Vl'ho were non-residents carrying on business at Secunderabad within the territories of the Nizam of Hyderabad, were acting as agents of two firms in Bombay and Madurai, in British India, for the supply of certain goods to the Nizam's Government.

In respect of the Commission due to the respondents by the firms the agreement between the parties was that the amounts were to be paid to the respondents in cash or by cheques at Secunderabad. For these amounts cheques drawn.by the firms on the Bombay and Madras branches, respectively, of the Imperial Bank of India, were sent by post at Bombay and Madurai to the respondents at Secunderabad, and when received, they were credited in their books of account, the cheques being sent to their banker there for collecting and crediting to their account.

For the assessment year 1945-1946 the Income-tax Officer, Berhampnr (in British India), assessed these sums as taxable income holding that the amount was received in British

. .

(2) S.C.R.

SUPREME COURT REPOltTS 869

India and not at Secunderabad. The Appellate Tribunal found '959 that all the cheques received at Secunderabad by the respondents \Vere treated by them as payment. The respondents claimed Com1nissioner of that in. view of the agreement between the parties that the Income-tax: amount of commission should be paid at Secunderabad, \Vhen Biho.r &- Orissa the cheques were sent by post, the post office was the agent v. of the debtor and not of the respondents, that the amount M/s. Putney & Co. must be treated as having been received when the post office delivered the cheques to the respondents, and that, consequently, the amount cannot be treated as having been received in British India. The Income-tax authorities relied on the decision in Commissioner of Income-tax v. Ogale Glass IVorks Ltd., [1955] r

S.C.R. 185 •.

Held, that in the case of payment by cheques sent by post the determination of the place of payment would depend upon the agreement between the parties or the course of conduct of the parties. If it is shown that the creilitor authorised the debtor either expressly or impliedly to send a cheque by post the property in the cheque passes to the creditor as soon as if is posted.

But \Vhere, as in the present case, the agreement was that the amount was to be paid at Secunderabad, outside British India, when the cheques were received by the respondents there the amount must be deemed to have been received at that place, and, therefore, the amount was not liable to be taxed in British India.

Commissioner of Income-tax v. Ogale Glass IVorks Ltd., [1955] r S.C.R. 185, distinguished. ·

CIVIL APPELLATE JumsDICTION: Civil Appeal No. 326 of 1957.

Appe.al by special leave from the judgment and order dated February 16, 1955, of the Orissa High Court in S. J.C. No. 117 of 1951. G. K. Daphtary, Solicitor-General of India, K. N.

Rajagopal Sastri, R. II. Dhebar and D. Gupta, for the appellant~ ·

Rameshwar Nath, S. N. Andley and J.B. Dadachanji, for the respondent.

1959. JIIay 5. The Judgment of tho Court was delivered by

 KAPUR, J.-This appeal pursuant to special leave is brought by the Commissioner of Income-tax against the judgment of th_e High Court of Orissa holding that the amounts received by the assessees-respondcnts were not received in what was British India. and

Kapzi, ].

--------=~~~--~-~-----·-··.

therefore not liable to income-tax. The respondents at all material times were non-residents carrying on Commissioner of

Income-tax business at Secunderabad which was then in the terri-

I959

Biha, & o,;;, a tories of the Nizam of Hyderabad. They acted as v. agents for the supply of gas plants manufactured by M/s. Patncy & Co. Messrs. T. V. S. Iyengar & Sons, Madura, to the

Kapu1 ].

Nizam's Government, and also as agents of the Lucas Indian Services, Ilombay branch, for the supply of certain goods to that Government. The year of assessment is 1945-46. There does not appear to have been any written agreement between the two manufacturers and the respondents but the goods were to be supplied on a commission basis. In pursuance of this agreement the respondents received from M/s. T.V.S. Iyengar & Sons, Madura, cheques drawn on the Imperial Bank of India, Madras, amounting to Rs. 35,202 in respect of all goods supplied from Madura and also from Lucas Indian Services, Bombay, by cheques drawn on Imperial Ilank of India, Bombay branch, amounting to Rs. 5,302 in respect of goods supplied by them, thus making a total of Rs. 40,504.

These cheques were sent by post and when received by the respondents at Secunderabad were credited in the account books of the respondents and sent to their banker G. Raghunathmal for collecting and crediting to the account of the respondents.

As against these sums so deposited the respondents at once drew cheques and thus operated on these amounts deposited.

In regard to the commission received from the Ilombay firm it was paid into the account on December 22, 1944, but was given credit for only on January 2,

1945. The Income-tax Officer assessed these sums as taxable income holding that the entire amount of Rs. 40,504 was received in British India and not at Secunderabad. An appeal was taken by the respondents to the. Appellate Assistant Commissioner who upheld the order holding that income must be held to . have accrued, arisen or received in Ilritish India.

Against this order the respondents took an appeal to the Income-tax Appellate Tribunal and it was held that the amounts were received by the respondents from Madura and Bombay firms as commission but

(2) S.C.R.

SUPREME COURT REPORTS 871

z959 they were received at Secunderabad. The appeal was therefore allowed. The finding of the Appellate Tri- Commissioner of bunal in their own words was:- I ncome-ta:r~ " The contention of the Appellants is that the Bihar & Orissa cheques being negotiable instruments and the creditor v. having accepted them and passed through their books, Mfs. Patney & Co. the receipt must be taken to be receipts in Hyderabad.

We agree with the view submitted by the appellants.

In Bhashyam's Negotiable Instruments Act, 8th Edition, Revised, page 556, it is stated that it will be open to a creditor to accept a cheque in absolute payment of money due to him, in which case it will be equivalent to cash payment. That being the position it cannot be said that the income was received in British India ".

At the instance of the Commissioner a reference under s. 66(1) of the Act was made to the High Court of Orissa for their opinion on the following question :-

" Whether in the circumstances of the case, the sums of Rs. 35,202 and Rs. 5,302 received as commission from T. V. S. Iyengar & Sons Ltd., and Lucas Indian Services Ltd., respectively were income that accrued, arose or were received in British India ".

The High Court found that the statement of case was imperfect and that the real question was different. It said:-

" The real question in all such cases is not merely whether the cheques were drawn on a bank in British India, and sent for collection to that bank. The question is whether when the. cheques were received by the assessee having bis place of business outside British India, those cheques were in fact received as absolute and final payments by way of unconditional discharge or whether they were received as mere conditional payments on realisation. The fact that cheques were drawn on a ball'k in British India or that they were sent for collection through a Secunderabad banker of the assessee though relevant, are not conclusive".

It therefore remitted the case to the Appellate Tribunal for submission of supplementary statement of case.

It appears that at that stage the controversy was

Kapur }.

'959 confined to the question whether the cheques having

Commissioner of been sent to Secunderabad and having been realised

Income-tax, in British India would amount to a final discharge or Bihar & Orissa an unconditional one.

The Tribunal in its supple-

M v. c mentary statement found that the course of conduct 1' Patncy'"'

0 • followed by the parties showed that the cheques were

Kapur 1. received from the Bombay and Madura firms in full satisfaction of the commission ascertained from time to time and due on such date. It said:

" Tb e facts that such entries were made in the assessee's books, that the cheques were put into the bank immediately, that the bank at once gave credit to the assessee for these sums after charging discount thereon and immediately allowed the assessee to operate on those sums are significant ". Therefore t, he finding of fact by the Tribunal although not specific was that the receipt of the cheque by the respondents operated as full discharge of the debt due on account of commission from these two firms.

The matter was decided by the High Court against the appellant and in the meanwhile this Court had given a judgment in Commissioner of Income-tax v.

Ogale Glass Works Ltd (1). Even after considering the decision of that case the High Court was of the opinion that the income of the respondents was not received in British India and answered the question against the Revenue. The High Court refused to give leave to appeal to this Court and it was this Court which gave special leave to appeal.

The question is whethoc the amounts of commission paid by cheques, drawn respectively on banks at Madras and Bombay and respectively posted from Madura and Bombay, can in the circumstances of this case be held to have been received in what was British India or at Secunderabad ? The Appellate Tribunal found that all the cheques whether from Madura or from Bombay were sent by the two respective firms from Madura or Bombay and were received by the respondents at Secunderabad and were treated as payment. The question still remains as to the effect of the sending of the cheques from Madura or Bombay by post. If there is an express request by the

(1) [1955] I S.C.R. 185.

(2) S.C.R.

SUPREME COUI~T REPORTS 873

creditor that the amount be paid by cheques to be sent '959 by post and they are so sent there is no doubt that Commissioner of the payment will be taken to be at the place where Income-tax, the cheque or cheques are posted.

The respondents Bihar &- Orissa argued that there was an agreement between the v.

Madura and Bombay firms and the respondents that M/s. Patney"" Co. the money would be paid whether in cash or by Kapur J. cheque 'at Secunderabad' and therefore when the cheques were sent by post the post office was the agent of the debtor and not of the respondents. There is in support of the respondents an affidavit which was filed in the assessment proceedings and which was relied upon in the High Court. According to this affidavit it was verbally agreed that the commission would be paid at Secunderabad in cash or by cheque (as the case may be), the language used in the affidavit was:

"The above commission was verbally decided to be paid to Messrs. Patney & Co. Ltd., Secunderabad the Agent Company in Hyderabad State at Secunderabad in cash or by cheque as the case might be ".

In the case of payment by cheques sent by post the determination of the place of payment would depend upon the agreement between the parties or the course of conduct of the parties. If it is shown that the creditor authorised the debtor either expressly or impliedly to send a cheque by post the property in the cheque passes to the creditor as soon as it is posted.

Therefore the post office is an agent of the person to whom the cheque is posted if there be an express or implied authority to send it by post (Commissioner of Income-tax v. Ogale Glass Works Ltd. (1)). In that case there was an express request of the assessee to remit the amount of thebills outstanding against the debtor, that is, Government of India by means of cheques. But it was observed by this Court that according to the course of business usage in general which has to be considered as a part of the surrounding circumstances the parties must have intended that the cheques should be sent by post which is the usual and normal mode of transmission and therefore the posting of cheques in Delhi amounted to payment in

(1) (1955] I S.C.R. 185.

I959 Delhi to the post office which was constituted the Commissioner of agent of the assessee. But it was argued for the

Incomet•~· respondents that in the absence of such a request the Bihar & Orissa post office could not be constituted as the agent of the

M/s. Pat:~Y & co. creditor and relied on a passage in Ogale's case (1) at p. 204 where it was observed:- J(apur ] . " Of course if there be no such request, express or implied, then the delivery of the letter or t, he cheque to the post office is delivery to the agent of the sender himself ".

It was further contended that in this case there was an express agreement that the payment was to be made at Secunderabad and therefore the matter does not fall within the rule in Ogale Glass W arks case (1) and the following principle laid down in judgment by Das, J. (as he then was), is inapplicable:-

"Applying the above principles to the facts found by the Tribunal the position appears to be this. The engagement of the Government was to make payment by cheques. The cheques were drawn in Delhi and received by the assessee in Aundh by post. According to the course of business usage to which, as part of the surrounding circumstances, attention has to be paid under the authorities cited above, the parties must have intended that the cheques should be sent by post which is the usual and normal agency for transmission of such articles and according to the Tribunal's finding they were in fact received by the assessee by post." In our opinion this contention is well-founded.

Whatever may be the position when there is an express or implied request for the cheque for the amount being sent by post or when it can be inferred from the course of conduct of the parties, the appellant in this case expressly required the amount of the commission to be paid at Secunderabad and the rule of Ogale Work's case (1) would be inapplicable.

The High Court judgment in our view was correct and we would therefore dismiss this appeal with costs ..

Appeal dismissed.

(1) (1955] I S.C, R. 185.

Kapur

COMMISSIONER OF INCOME-TAX, BIHAR & ORISSA

M/S. PATNEY & CO

B. P. SINHA, J.

Negotiable Instruments Act

s. 66(1)