AI OCR 
TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2016 (2) TMI 94
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....be substantial questions of law: [1] Whether the Hon'ble Tribunal has erred in law and in facts in holding that the property was acquired by the member and not by the HUF? [2] Whether the Hon'ble Tribunal has erred in law and in facts in holding that the liability of members of HUF is not joint and several? 2. The facts giving rise to the present appeal are that M/s Jwelly Tea Co., an HUF, is a dealer duly registered under the provisions of the Gujarat Sales Tax Act, 1969. In respect of outstanding dues of the HUF, an order of attachment came to be passed by the Commercial Tax Officer under section 45 of the Gujarat Value Added Tax, 2003 (hereinafter referred to as 'the GVAT Act') attaching the properties of Shilpaben P Shah, w....
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....of the karta of the HUF, which has been purchased by her out of the amounts gifted to her by her father, mother and brothers, and is in the nature of streedhan. It was submitted that the present case does not fall within the ambit of sections 57 or 58 of the Act and therefore, the Tribunal did not commit any error in holding that the property in question could not have been attached. Accordingly, the appeal being devoid of merits deserved to be dismissed. 5. The facts as emerging from the record reveal that the respondent, a registered dealer, is an HUF. Property belonging to the wife of the karta of the HUF came to be attached under section 45 of the GVAT Act in connection with the outstanding dues of the HUF. The Tribunal, in the impugne....
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....rnment revenue, the Commissioner can attach provisionally, any property belonging to the dealer. In the facts of the present case the dealer is an HUF and it is an admitted position that the property in question does not belong to the dealer. Evidently, therefore, the provisions of section 45 could not have been resorted to in the facts of the present case. 7. Insofar as the provisions of sections 57 and 58 of the GVAT Act are concerned, sub-section (2) of section 57 which is relevant for the present purpose provides that where a dealer, liable to pay tax under the Act is a Hindu Undivided Family and the property of the Hindu Undivided Family is partitioned amongst the various members or groups of members then, each member or group of memb....
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....n or otherwise, which means any person who satisfies the requirement of that sub-section. Sub-section (15) of section 2 of the GVAT Act defines 'person' to include an individual, a joint family or Hindu Undivided Family, etc. Therefore, the Act recognises a Hindu Undivided Family as a dealer and as a person. The legislature having treated a Hindu Undivided Family as a taxable entity, distinct from the individual members constituting it, it was not open for the appellant to attach the movable properties of an individual member. In this regard, reference may be made to the decision of the Supreme Court in the case of Kapurchand Shrimal v. Tax Recovery Officer, Hyderabad & Ors., AIR 1969 SC 682, wherein the court has held as under: "5. T....
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....corporated or not, (vi) a local authority, and (vii) every artificial juridical person, not falling within any of the preceding sub-clauses. The Legislature having treated a Hindu undivided family as a taxable entity distinct from the individual members constituting it, and proceedings for assessment and recovery tax having been taken against the Hindu undivided family, it was not open to the Tax Recovery Officer to initiate proceeding against the manager of the Hindu undivided family for his arrest and detention. It is true that if properties of the family, movable and immovable, are to be attached proceedings may be started against the Hindu undivided family and the manager represents the family in proceedings before the Tax Recovery Offi....