TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
1964 (10) TMI 110
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....t balance of Rs. 1,57,056-14-6. On the same day, her account was debited with a sum of Rs. 1,01,000 and various sums totalling this amount were credited in the accounts of different persons in the books of the firm, among them being a sum of Rs. 15,000 credited in the account of the deity, Sri Parmanand Behariji Maharaj. The sums were credited in these several accounts at the instance of Nanhi Devi as gifts made by her. Excepting the deity, the recipients of the remaining sums were the descendants of the brother of Nanhi Devi's husband, Nanhi Devi herself being a childless widow. The transfer entries in the cash book of the firm were signed by the donees personally and where they were minors were signed by their natural guardians. In th....
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.... in favour of the idol, Sri Parmanand Behariji Thakurji Maharaj, by Srimathi Nanhi Devi?" What constitutes a "gift" has been defined in section 122 of the Transfer of Property Act. That there may be a gift there must be a transfer of movable or immovable property. What is a "transfer of property" has been defined in section 5. It is an act by which a living person conveys property to one or more living persons. And the words "living person" have been defined in that provision to extend to a company or association or a body of individuals, whether incorporated or not. Now it seems to us that a deity is neither a "living person" within the natural meaning of those words nor is it so within the scope of their extended definition. In thei....
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....e property should be vested in a trustee or that possession should be handed over to a manager. All that is necessary is that the owner of the property should divest himself of his rights of ownership therein and that the property should be set apart for the object to which it is dedicated. In this view of the matter also the term "gift" as used in the Transfer of Property Act cannot be properly applied when property is dedicated to a Hindu deity. What is dedication under the notions of Hindu jurisprudence has been described by Mookerjee J. in Bhupati Nath Smrititirtha v. Ram Lal Maitra [1909] I.L.R. 37 Cal. 128, 155 (F.B.). in the following terms: "The true Hindu conception of dedication for the establishment of the image of the deity a....
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....erty Act and it was held that the transfer was governed by that enactment. It is not necessary for us to express ourselves on the correctness of that decision. It is sufficient to point out that the instant case must be governed by the principles obtaining under the Hindu law. Reference was also made to Shaukat Begam v. Sri Thakurji Maharaj (A.I.R. 1931 Oudh 14), but all that was decided in that case was that the provisions of section 123 of the Transfer of Property Act applied to gifts made directly as well as to gifts made through the intervention of a trust. The question whether the provisions of section 123 could apply at all to a Hindu religious endowment was not raised in that case. Learned counsel has also relied upon Bhapatrao v. Sh....
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.... by the Tribunal. Learned counsel for the Commissioner then urges that crediting the sum of Rs. 15,000 in the account of the deity did not in law amount to the making of an endowment. It is well-settled that no writing is necessary to create an endowment unless the endowment is to be created by a will. It is also not necessary that a trust be created for that purpose. No religious ceremony such as sankalp or samarpan is necessary. All that is essential is that "firstly, property in respect of which the endowment is made must be designated with precision; secondly, the object or purpose of dedication should be clearly indicated; and, thirdly, the founder must effectively divest himself of all beneficial interest in the endowed property" M....