Quick succession relief under estate duty law must be computed by statutory scale, leaving no administrative discretion.

Quick succession relief under section 31 of the Estate Duty Act, 1953 is mandatory once the statutory preconditions are met: estate duty must have been payable on the same property on the first death and again within five years on the second death. The Board's role is limited to being satisfied that those conditions exist; the actual relief must then be computed by the assessing authority under the graduated statutory scale, with no discretion to substitute an administratively fixed amount. On the facts stated, the second death within one year attracted fifty per cent relief, and the higher relief claimed was admissible.

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Issues: Whether quick succession relief under section 31 of the Estate Duty Act, 1953 was to be determined in the Board's discretion or computed by the assessing authority according to the statutory scale, and whether the higher relief claimed by the accountable person was admissible.

Analysis: Section 31 requires the Board only to be satisfied that estate duty had been payable on the same property on the first death and again within five years on the second death. Once that satisfaction is communicated, the further step is a mandatory computation of relief according to the graduated percentages fixed by the section. The provision does not confer any discretion on the Board to fix a different amount. The relief is to be worked out by the assessing authority on the basis of the time elapsed between the two deaths. On the facts, the second death occurred within one year of the first, attracting fifty per cent relief.

Conclusion: The relief had to be calculated under section 31 by the assessing authority in accordance with the statutory scale, and the higher relief was admissible. The Department's objection to the amount of relief failed.

Final Conclusion: The statutory scheme of quick succession relief is mandatory and leaves no discretion to substitute an administratively fixed figure for the amount computed under the provision.

Ratio Decidendi: Where a fiscal relief provision prescribes a mandatory scale, the assessing authority must apply that scale once the statutory preconditions are satisfied, and administrative determination cannot override the amount so computed.

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