House-property tax depends on legal ownership, not actual rent receipt, so annual value stayed assessable in trustees' hands.

For house-property taxation under section 9, legal ownership is the decisive factor, not the owner's ability to let the property or actually receive rent. The trustees remained the legal owners under the statutory trust, so the annual value continued to be assessable in their hands despite the evacuee interest vesting in the Custodian and rent being received by another person. The Custodian's receipt of rent was neither a statutory charge under section 9(1)(iv) nor an effective alienation of income at source. The taxable annual value therefore remained with the trustees, and assessment was upheld against them.

---

---

Issues: (i) Whether the annual value of the properties remained assessable in the hands of the trustees under section 9 despite the evacuee interest vesting in the Custodian. (ii) Whether the rent receivable by the Custodian constituted a charge within section 9(1)(iv) or amounted to an effective alienation of income at source.

Issue (i): Whether the annual value of the properties remained assessable in the hands of the trustees under section 9 despite the evacuee interest vesting in the Custodian.

Analysis: Liability under section 9 depends on ownership of the property, not on the owner's ability to let it or actually receive rent. The legal ownership of the properties remained vested in the trustees under the statutory trust, while the incumbent's right was only a right of occupation without rent. The vesting of the evacuee's interest in the Custodian did not transfer ownership of the properties or alter the tax incidence on the trustees. The inability of the trustees to exploit the properties commercially did not affect assessment under the house-property provision.

Conclusion: The annual value was correctly assessable in the hands of the trustees, and the answer was in favour of the Revenue.

Issue (ii): Whether the rent receivable by the Custodian constituted a charge within section 9(1)(iv) or amounted to an effective alienation of income at source.

Analysis: The rent receivable by the Custodian did not fall within the statutory concept of a charge under section 9(1)(iv). Nor was there an alienation of income at the source, because the income computed under section 9 is a notional annual value flowing from ownership, and the relevant ownership remained with the trustees. The fact that the actual rent was received by another person did not displace the assessability attached to the owners.

Conclusion: The contention failed, and the answer was against the assessee.

Final Conclusion: The reference was answered entirely against the assessee, and the trustees remained liable to assessment on the house-property income.

Ratio Decidendi: For assessment of house-property income under section 9, the decisive factor is legal ownership of the property, and not the owner's capacity to let or actually receive rent; vesting of the right to receive rent in another person does not by itself divert the taxable annual value from the owner.

---