Advisory income tax reference not a final judgment, so no appeal lay under the Bombay Letters Patent.

A High Court decision on a statutory reference under Section 51 of the Indian Income Tax Act, 1918, which merely supplied an advisory opinion for the revenue authority to complete assessment, was not a final judgment, decree or order. Because the ruling did not itself enforce liability, grant executable relief, or finally dispose of rights in the ordinary judicial sense, it could not support an appeal under Clause 39 of the Bombay Letters Patent. The court held that the Letters Patent did not enlarge the meaning of final judgment or final order, so the appeal was incompetent.

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Issues: Whether a decision of the High Court given on a reference under Section 51 of the Indian Income Tax Act, 1918 was a final judgment, decree or order so as to support an appeal to His Majesty in Council under Clause 39 of the Bombay Letters Patent.

Analysis: The reference under Section 51 required the High Court to decide questions arising in assessment proceedings and to send its judgment to the revenue authority, but the ruling did not itself enforce liability or grant relief in the nature of an executable decree. The statutory scheme showed that the High Court's function was to furnish an advisory opinion for guidance in completing the assessment, and the revenue officer was then bound to act on that opinion. On the authorities concerning judgments on special cases, a decision that merely determines a question for future administrative action, without finally disposing of rights in the ordinary judicial sense, is not a final judgment or final order. The language of the Letters Patent did not enlarge that meaning.

Conclusion: The appeal was incompetent, as the High Court's decision under Section 51 was merely advisory and not a final judgment, decree or order within Clause 39.

Ratio Decidendi: A decision on a statutory reference that merely advises the revenue authority how to complete an assessment is not a final judgment or order for appellate purposes unless the governing instrument clearly confers such a right.

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