Gender-neutral meaning of "individual" under income-tax law extends clubbing provisions to a female assessee.

The term "individual" in Section 16(3)(a)(ii) of the Income-tax Act, 1922 was held to be gender-neutral and capable of including a female assessee. The Court reasoned that the disjunctive reference to "wife" and "minor child" did not show any intention to confine the provision to a male taxpayer, and the words in Section 16(3)(b) were not treated as limiting the main sub-clause. Applying that construction, the income of minor sons admitted to the benefits of partnership was includible in the mother's assessable income.

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Issues: Whether the word "individual" in Section 16(3)(a)(ii) of the Income-tax Act, 1922 includes a female assessee, so that the income of minor sons admitted to the benefits of partnership can be included in the mother's assessable income.

Analysis: The provision used the words "wife" and "minor child" disjunctively and did not indicate that the "individual" must necessarily be male. The reference in Section 16(3)(b) to assets transferred by "such individual for the benefit of his wife or minor child or both" was not treated as limiting sub-clause (a)(ii) to a father alone. The Court followed the earlier identical decision and held that the statutory language was wide enough to cover a female assessee.

Conclusion: The word "individual" includes a female assessee, and the income of the minor sons was includible in the mother's assessable income.

Final Conclusion: The legal question referred was answered in the affirmative, resulting in inclusion of the minors' partnership income in the assessee mother's taxable income.

Ratio Decidendi: For purposes of Section 16(3)(a)(ii) of the Income-tax Act, 1922, the term "individual" is gender-neutral and is not confined to a male assessee.

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