HUF status for capital gains on agricultural land prevailed where no cogent proof supported individual ownership.

Capital gains from the sale of agricultural land were assessed in the hands of the Hindu undivided family because the assessee filed the return in HUF status under section 148 and also claimed section 54B relief on that basis. The later contention that the land belonged to the assessee individually was not supported by fresh material or cogent evidence of individual ownership. The burden to establish a different taxable status rested on the assessee, and that burden was not discharged. The capital gains were therefore treated as HUF income.

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Issues: Whether the capital gains arising from sale of agricultural land were assessable in the hands of the Hindu undivided family or in the individual capacity of the assessee.

Analysis: The assessee had filed the return in response to notice under section 148 in the status of HUF and had also claimed deduction under section 54B in the revised return. The claim that the land belonged to the individual was raised without bringing new material to establish individual ownership. The onus to prove a different status lay on the assessee, and that onus was not discharged by cogent evidence.

Conclusion: The capital gains were correctly assessed in the hands of the HUF, and the assessee's contrary claim was rejected.

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