Right to seek tax reference extends to any aggrieved assessee affected by the Tribunal's order, not only the appellant.

Section 66(1) of the Income-tax Act, 1922 was construed by reference to the statutory definition of "assessee" in section 2(2), which covers not only a person liable to pay tax but also a person against whom proceedings have been taken. On that basis, the right to seek a reference of a question of law was not confined to the party who had appealed to the Tribunal. A person whose tax liability was affected by the Tribunal's order was an aggrieved assessee and could invoke section 66(1) even if not the appellant before the Tribunal. The application for reference by the affected assessee was therefore competent.

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Issues: Whether a person who was not the appellant before the Tribunal, but who was nonetheless an assessee and whose tax liability was affected by the Tribunal's order, could apply for a reference of a question of law under section 66(1) of the Income-tax Act, 1922.

Analysis: The expression "assessee" in section 66(1) was construed with reference to the statutory definition in section 2(2), which includes not only a person by whom tax is payable but also a person in respect of whom proceedings under the Act have been taken. On that footing, the right to seek a reference was not confined to the party who had appealed to the Tribunal. Since the Tribunal's decision affected the fourth respondent's liability to tax, he was an aggrieved assessee and was entitled to invoke section 66(1). The Court also noted that the appeal and reference provisions were not restricted technically to the party on the record of the Tribunal appeal, but extended to any assessee adversely affected by the order.

Conclusion: The application for reference by the fourth respondent was competent, and the challenge to the Tribunal's power to entertain it failed.

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