Contingent trust interest is taxable wealth unless statutory exclusion is affirmatively shown on the record.

A contingent interest under trust deeds is property capable of inclusion in net wealth where entitlement depends on survival to a future vesting date. The assessee had no immediate right to the corpus until that uncertain event occurred, so the interest fell within contingent interest under the Transfer of Property Act and remained taxable under the Wealth-tax Act. The exclusion for interests not available for more than six years from vesting applies only when the record affirmatively shows that beneficial enjoyment is postponed beyond that period; a mere possibility of non-survival is insufficient. The trust interests therefore remained includible in net wealth.

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Issues: (i) Whether the assessee's interest under the trust deeds was a contingent interest includible in his net wealth; (ii) whether the exclusion in section 2(e)(1)(v) of the Wealth-tax Act applied because the interest was not available for a period exceeding six years from vesting.

Issue (i): Whether the assessee's interest under the trust deeds was a contingent interest includible in his net wealth.

Analysis: The trusts provided for accumulation of income for ten years, with the corpus and accretions to be held absolutely for the assessee only if he survived till the vesting date. Until that date the assessee had no immediate right to the corpus and his entitlement depended on the occurrence of a specified uncertain event. Such an interest answers the description of a contingent interest under section 21 of the Transfer of Property Act. A contingent interest is property, and where the Wealth-tax Act brings property of every description within the charge, the interest is capable of inclusion in net wealth.

Conclusion: The assessee's interest was a contingent interest and was includible in the computation of net wealth.

Issue (ii): Whether the exclusion in section 2(e)(1)(v) of the Wealth-tax Act applied because the interest was not available for a period exceeding six years from vesting.

Analysis: The exclusion is a special wealth-tax provision and does not remove the interest from the general category of property. It applies only where it can be positively established on the record that the assessee is not entitled to enjoy the beneficial interest for more than six years. A mere possibility that the assessee may not survive beyond six years after vesting is insufficient to attract the exclusion.

Conclusion: The exclusion did not apply, and the value of the interest remained taxable.

Final Conclusion: The reference was answered against the assessee on all questions, and the value of the trust interests remained includible in the assessee's net wealth.

Ratio Decidendi: A contingent interest under a trust is property chargeable to wealth-tax unless the statutory exclusion is affirmatively shown to apply on the record; a mere possibility of non-enjoyment beyond the stipulated period is not enough.

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