Widow's UN pension treated as exempt social security benefit, not taxable salary in the beneficiary's hands.

A widow's pension received from the United Nations Joint Staff Pension Fund was treated as a service-linked social security benefit flowing from the deceased employee's contributory UN emoluments, not as fresh taxable income of the beneficiary. Because the underlying UN remuneration was exempt and the payment retained that exempt character, it was not properly classifiable as salary, annuity, or taxable pension in the widow's hands. On that basis, the receipt was held not chargeable to tax as salary under the Income-tax Act, 1961, and the exemption claim succeeded.

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Issues: Whether widow's pension received from the United Nations Joint Staff Pension Fund was taxable as salary under section 17(1)(ii) of the Income-tax Act, 1961, or was exempt in the hands of the assessee because the underlying UN emoluments were exempt.

Analysis: The pension arose from a contributory social security scheme of the United Nations in which the deceased employee had contributed during service, and the widow's entitlement flowed directly from that scheme. The payment was treated as a return linked to the employee's own contributions and service-related entitlements, not as a fresh personal income of the widow in the ordinary sense. The same character that attached to the husband's UN remuneration for exemption purposes could not be given one meaning for taxation and a different meaning for exemption. On the facts, the receipt was not properly classifiable as salary, annuity, or taxable pension in the assessee's hands.

Conclusion: The pension received by the assessee was not taxable under section 17(1)(ii) and the exemption claim was accepted.

Final Conclusion: The departmental appeals failed and the assessment made by the Income-tax Officer was not sustained.

Ratio Decidendi: A widow's pension received under a United Nations contributory staff pension scheme, where the underlying UN remuneration is exempt and the payment represents a service-linked social security benefit rather than a taxable salary receipt in the beneficiary's hands, is not chargeable as salary under section 17(1)(ii) of the Income-tax Act, 1961.

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