Property ownership dispute for tax purposes requires full factual inquiry before income can be assessed in one hand

Ownership of property for income-tax purposes must be determined on a complete factual record where title, possession, and enjoyment are disputed. An unprobated will and a legal opinion, without supporting materials such as lease deeds, rent receipts, property tax records, or mortgage documents, were insufficient to establish whether the assessee held the property as full owner, co-owner, or on behalf of a Hindu undivided family. The matter therefore required fresh factual examination before income could be assessed in a particular hand.

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Issues: Whether the assessee was liable to be assessed on the entire income from the property known as Keshav Bagh, or only on a part of it, in view of the unprobated will, the claimed co-ownership, and the evidentiary material on record.

Analysis: The dispute turned on ownership of the property and the capacity in which the assessee had enjoyed and dealt with it. The legal opinion and copy of the will by themselves were not sufficient to resolve whether the assessee exercised rights as full owner or only as co-owner. The record also did not contain all relevant materials such as lease deeds, rent receipts, property tax records, or the mortgage documents needed to test the respective claims. The question whether the unprobated will could be relied upon for the purpose of establishing title, and whether the assessee's alternative claim that the income belonged to a Hindu undivided family or that only half the income was taxable, required fuller factual inquiry.

Conclusion: The issue could not be finally decided on the existing record and required fresh examination by the appellate authority.

Ratio Decidendi: Where ownership of property for income-tax purposes is disputed, and the existing record does not contain sufficient evidence of actual possession, enjoyment, and the capacity in which the property was held, the matter must be determined on a complete factual inquiry before taxing the income in a particular hand.

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