ivil Appeal Nos
768 769 of 1978
Appeals by Special Leave from the Judgment and order dated 2811977 of the Punjab and Haryana High Court in Income Tax Reference No 29 of 1975
BB Ahuja and Miss A Subhashini for the Appellant
GC Sharma ED Helms RS Sharma and KB Rohtagi for the Respondent
The Judgment of the Court was delivered by VENKATARAMIAH J
The Commissioner of Wealth Tax Amritsar has filed the above appeals by special leave against the judgment of the High Court of Punjab and Haryana in a reference made under section 271 of the hereinafter 422 referred to as the Act  answering in favour of the assessee the following two questions 1
Whether on the facts and in the circumstances of the case the Tribunal was right in law in holding that the offence relating to the omission to file the Wealth tax returns was a continuing offence  2
Whether on the facts and in the circumstances of the case the Tribunal was right in law upholding the penalties of Rs 5382 and Rs 7759 levied by the department on the assessee under section 181a of the  for the assessment years 1964 65 and 1965 66 respectively  The assessee the respondent in these appeals filed his wealth tax returns for the assessment years 1964 65 and 1965 66 on March 18 1971 while he was required by section 141 of the Act to file the return for the assessment year 1964 65 on or before June 30 1964 and the return for the assessment year 1965 66 on or before June 30 1965
The Wealth tax Officer completed the assessments for the aforementioned years on March 22 1971 determining the total wealth at Rs 145800 for the assessment year 1964 65 as against the declared wealth of Rs 138550 and at Rs 165200 for the assessment year 1965 66 as against the declared wealth of Rs 159127 and also commenced proceedings for the levying penalty under section 181a of the Act for late submission of returns
Ultimately the penalties were levied as follows Assessment year 1964 65 i For the period from 1764 to 31369 Penalty at 2 pm subject to maximum of 50 of the wealth tax payable under section 181a before its amendments on 1469 by the Finance Act 1969 Rs 115 ii For the period from 1469 to 18371 Penalty at 12 of the net wealth for each month of the default under section 181a as amended by the Finance Act 1969 Rs 5267 Rs 5382 423 Assessment year 1965 66 i For the period from 1765 to 30369 Penalty at 2 pm subject to maximum of 50 of the wealth tax payable under section 181a before its amendment on 1469 by the Finance Act 1969 Rs163 ii For the period from 1469 to 18371 Penalty at 12 of the net wealth for each month of default under section 81a as amended on 1469 by the Finance Act 1969 Rs 7596 Rs 7759 The above orders levying penalties were upheld in appeal by the Appellate Assistant Commissioner and the Income tax Appellate Tribunal Amritsar Bench Amritsar
At the instance of the assessee a consolidated reference was made by the Income tax Appellate Tribunal to the High Court referring the above two questions for its opinion
The High Court answered the said questions in favour of the assessee after rejecting the contention of the department that the default or failure to file the return in time was a continuing default and that the penalty had to be computed for the period prior to April 1 1965 in accordance with section 18 as it stood prior to its amendment by the Wealth tax Amendment Act 1964 for the period between April 1 1965 to March 3 1969 in accordance with section 18 of the Act as amended by the Wealth tax Amendment Act 1964 and for the period between April 1 969 to March 18 1971 on which date the returns were filed in accordance with sec
18 of the Act as amended by the Finance Act 1966
Aggrieved by the decision of the High Court the Department has filed these appeals under Article 136 of the Constitution 
Before dealing with the contentions of the parties it is appropriate to set out the provisions of the Act which have a bearing on the question involved in the present appeals as they stood during the relevant periods Prior to April 1 1965 sub sections 1 and 3 of section 14 of the Act stood as follows 424 14
Return of wealth 1 Every person whose net wealth on the valuation date was of such amount as to render him liable to wealth tax under this Act shall before the thirtieth day of June of the corresponding assessment year furnish to the Wealth tax officer a return in the prescribed form and verified in the prescribed manner setting forth his net wealth as on the valuation date 2   3 The Wealth tax officer may if he is satisfied that it is necessary so to do extend the date for the delivery of return under this section
 After April 1 1965 14 1 Every person if his net wealth or the net wealth of any other person in respect of which he is assessable under this Act on the valuation date was of such an amount as to render him liable to wealth tax under this Act shall before the thirtieth day of June of the corresponding assessment year furnish to the Wealth tax officer a return in the prescribed form and verified in the prescribed manner setting forth the net wealth as on the valuation date
2   3 The Wealth tax officer may if he is satisfied that it is necessary so to do extend the date for the delivery of the return under this section
 Section 15 of the Act which has not undergone any change since the commencement of the Act reads 15
Return after due date and amendment of return If any person has not furnished a return within the time allowed under section 14 or having furnished a return under that section discovers any omission or a wrong statement therein he may furnish a return or a revised return as the case may be at any time before the assessment is made
 The relevant parts of section 18 of the Act as they stood during the three periods referred to above read as follows 425 Prior to April 1 1965 18
1 If the Wealth tax officer Appellate Assistant Commissioner Commissioner or Appellate Tribunal in the course of any proceedings under this Act is satisfied that any person a has without reasonable cause failed to furnish the return of his net wealth which he is required to furnish under sub section 1 or sub section 2 of section 14 or section 17 or has without reasonable cause failed to furnish it within the time allowed and in the manner required or b  c   he or it may by order in writing direct that such person shall pay by way of penalty i in the case referred to in clause a in addition to the amount of wealth tax payable by him a sum not exceeding one and a half times the amount of such tax and   Between April 1 1965 and March 31 1969 18
1 If the Wealth tax officer Appellate Assistant Commissioner Commissioner or Appellate Tribunal in the course of any proceedings under this Act is satisfied that any person a has without reasonable cause failed to furnish the return of his net wealth which he is required to furnish under sub section a of section 14 or by notice given under sub section 2 of section 14 or section 17 or has without reasonable cause failed to furnish it within the time allowed and in the manner required by sub section 1 of section 14 or by such notice as the case may be or b   c   426 he or it may by order in writing direct that such person shall pay by way of penalty i in the cases referred to in clause a in addition to the amount of wealth tax if any payable by him a sum equal to two per cent of the tax for every month during which the default continued but not exceeding in the aggregate fifty per cent of the tax After April 1 1969 and as on March 18 1971 on which date the returns were filed 18
1 If the Wealth tax officer Appellate Assistant Commissioner Commissioner or Appellate Tribunal in the course of any proceedings under this Act is satisfied that any person a has without reasonable cause failed to furnish the return which he is required to furnish under sub section 1 of section 14 or by notice given under sub section 2 of section 14 or section 17 or has without reason able cause failed to furnish within the time allowed and in the manner required by sub section 1 of section 14 or by such notice as the case may be or b   c   he or it may by order in writing direct that such person shall pay by way of penalty i in the cases referred to in clause a in addition to the amount of wealth tax if any payable by him a sum for every month during which the default continued equal to one half per cent of A the net wealth assessed under section 16 as reduced by the amount of net wealth on which in accordance with the rates of wealth tax specified in Paragraph A of Part I of the Schedule or Part II of the Schedule the wealth tax chargeable is nil or B the net wealth assessed under section 17 where assessment has been made under that section as reduced by 427 1 the net wealth if any assessed previously under section 16 or section 17 or 2 the amount of net wealth on which in accordance with the rates of wealth tax specified in Paragraph A of Part I of the Schedule or Part II of the Schedule the wealth tax chargeable is nil whichever is greater but not exceeding in the aggregate an amount equal to the net wealth assessed under section 16 or as the case may be the net wealth assessed under section 17 as reduced in either case in the manner aforesaid   Now let us analyse the above provisions of law
Section 14 of the Act which has not undergone any material change from the commencement of the Act in so far as the question involved in these appeals is concerned requires a person the value of whose wealth is such as would attract the liability to pay tax to file a return of his wealth as on the valuation date in the prescribed manner before the Wealth tax Officer on or before the thirtieth of June of the assessment year or on or before any date upto which the Wealth tax officer has extended the time to file the return
Section 15 of the Act however enables such a person to file a return at any time before the assessment is made
The distinction between section 14 and section 15 of the Act lies in the fact that whereas under section 14 a duty is imposed on the assessee to file a return within the prescribed date section 15 enables him to file a return before the assessment is made even though the last date prescribed by section 141 is over
Section 18 of the Act deals with three types of penalties for certain specified acts or omissions on the part of the assessee referred to in clauses a b and c of sub section 1 thereof
We are concerned in this case with the question of levy of penalty in respect of omissions referred to in clause a of section 181 of the Act
There are four kinds of omissions referred to in that clause i failure to furnish the return which the assessee is required to furnish under sub section i of section 14 ii failure to furnish the return as required by a notice issued under section 142 or section 17 iii failure to furnish the return as required by section 141 within the time allowed and in the prescribed manner and iv failure to furnish the return as required by a notice issued under section 142 or section 17 within the time allowed and in the prescribed manner
Each one of these omissions expose the assessee to the levy of penalty unless reasonable cause is shown for not performing 428 the duty
In clause i of section 181 of the Act the penalty leviable for any of the omissions referred to in section 181a is set out but the measure of penalty imposable has varied from time to time
Prior to April 1 1965 the penalty imposable was a sum not exceeding one and a half times the amount of wealth tax payable by the assessee during the assessment year in question
Within the outer limit referred to above The officer concerned or the Tribunal as the case may be could impose any amount as penalty having regard to all the relevant circumstances of the case including perhaps the time that had elapsed from the last day allowed to file the return
Between April 1 1965 and March 31 1969 the measure of penalty was regulated by section 18 of the Act as amended in 1964
During that period the penalty imposable was a sum equivalent to two per cent of the tax for every month during which the default continued but not exceeding in the aggregate fifty per cent of the tax
The penalty leviable during this period was less onerous than it was before April 1 1965
Then came the amendment made by the Finance Act of 1969
After April 1 1969 by reason of the amendment introduced by the Finance Act of 1969 the penalty imposable was altered to a sum for every month during which the default continued equal to one half per cent of the net wealth calculated in accordance with the amended provisions in section 18
The penalty leviable during this period was more drastic than what it was before
One significant difference between the law as it existed prior to April 1 1965 and the law as it existed during the subsequent two periods is that whereas during the period prior to April I 1965 there was no specific reference in clause i of section 18 a to the time lag between the last date on which the return had to be filed and the date on which it was actually filed the said factor was expressly required to be taken into consideration after April 1 1965 while determining the penalty payable by the assessee
Another significant factor which requires to be borne in mind is that neither the Wealth tax Amendment Act 1964 nor the Finance Act 1969 by which section 18 of the Act was amended expressly stated that the amended provisions of section 18 would be applicable to an assessee who had failed to file the return in respect of any preceding assessment year and the said default had continued after the amendment came into force except using the phrase for every month during which the default continued in that part of section 18 which prescribed the measure of penalty
The contention of the Department is that whatever may have been the position of law before April 1 1965 on and after that date 429 the default committed by an assessee in not filing a return as required by section 141 of the Act amounted to a continuing wrong which attracted the penalty as provided by the law in force at the time when such default continued
In other words it is contended that in this case since the assessee who had to file a return after April 1 1965 for assessment year 1965 66 had not f led the same till March 13 1971 penalty had to be computed for the period upto April 1 1969 under the provisions of section 18 of the Act as it stood during that period and for the subsequent period additional penalty should be levied in accordance with section 18 as amended by the Finance Act 1969
Relying upon the decision of the Kerala High Court in Commissioner of Wealth tax Kerala vs Smt
V Pathummabi it is argued that amendments made in 1964 and 1969 brought about a qualitative change in the nature of the default contemplated under section 18 and that what could have been a completed default before April 1 1965 became a continuing default
Even assuming that this argument is correct it has to be held that the decision of the High Court in so far as the default committed by the assessee in not filing the return in respect of the assessment year 1964 65 is concerned is not erroneous
What remains to be considered is whether the decision in respect of the default committed by the assessee in not filing the return due on June 31 1955 for the assessment year 1965 66 is liable to be interfered with
To repeat the relevant part of section 18 of the Act can be divided into two parts the first part contained in clause a of section 181 setting out the gist of the default and the second part prescribing the measure of penalty
The former part has more or less remained the same from the commencement of the Act and it is only the latter part which has undergone changes
The question is whether by reason of the changes in the latter pari there has been a change in the nature of the wrong referred to in section 18 1 a of the Act
A liability in law ordinarily arises out of an act of commission or an act of omission
When a person does an act which law prohibits him from doing it and attaches a penalty for doing it he is stated to have committed an act of commission which amounts to a wrong in the eye of law
Similarly when a person omits to do an act which is required by law to be performed by him and attaches a penalty for such omission he is said to have 430 committed an act of omission which is also a wrong in the eye of law
Ordinarily a wrongful act or failure to perform an act required by law to be done becomes a completed act of commission or omission as the case may be as soon as the wrongful act is committed in the former case and when the time prescribed by law to perform an act expires in the latter case and the liability arising therefrom gets fastened as soon as the act of commission or of omission is completed
The extent of that liability is ordinarily measured according to the law in force at the time of such completion
In the case of acts amounting to crimes the punishment to be imposed cannot be enhanced at all under our Constitution by any subsequent legislation by reason of Article 20 I of the Constitution which declares that no person shall be subjected to a penalty greater than that which might have been inflicted under the law in force at the time of the commission of the offence
In other cases however even though the liability may be enhanced it can only be done by a subsequent law of course subject to the Constitution which either by express words or by necessary implication provides for such enhancement
In the instant case the contention is that the wrong or the default in question has been altered into a continuing wrong or default giving rise to a liability de die in diem that is from day to day
The distinctive nature of a continuing wrong is that the law that is violated makes the wrong doer continuously liable for penalty
A wrong or default which is complete but whose effect may continue to be felt even after its completion is however not a continuing wrong or default
It is reasonable to take the view that the court should not be eager to hold that an act or omission is a continuing wrong or default unless there are words in the statute concerned which make out that such was the intention of the legislature
In the instant case whenever the question of levying penalty arises what has to be first considered is whether the assessee has failed without reasonable cause to file the return as required by law and if it is held that he has failed to do so then penalty has to be levied in accordance with the measure provided in the Act
When the default is the filing of a delayed return the penalty may be correlated to the time lag between the last day for filing it without penalty and the day on which it is filed and the quantum of tax or wealth involved in the case for purposes of determining the quantum of penalty but the default however is only one which takes place on the expiry of the last day for filing the return without penalty and not a continuing one
The default in question does not however give rise to a fresh cause of action every day
Explaining the expression 431 a continuing cause of action  Lord Lindley in Hole vs Chard Union observed What is a continuing cause of action  Speaking accurately there is no such thing but what is called a continuing cause of action is a cause of action which arises from the repetition of acts or omissions of the same kind as that for which the action was brought In the same decision Lord Justice A L Smith who concurred with the above view said If once a cause of action arises and the acts com plained of are continuously repeated the cause of action continues and goes on de die in diem
It seems to me that there was a connection in the present case between the series of acts before and after the action was brought they were repeated in succession and became a continuing cause of action
They were an assertion of the same claim namely a claim to continue to pour sewage into the stream and a continuance of the same alleged right
In my opinion there was here a continuing cause of action within the meaning of the rule
 The distinction between a continuing offence and an offence which is not a continuing one is well brought out in the decision of the High Court of Bombay in State vs A H Bhiwandiwalla
In that case the accused respondent had been charged with two offences namely a failure to apply for registration of his factory and to give notice of occupation and b running the factory without a licence issued under the 
The accused had a plea of limitation against the prosecution
In that context the High Court observed In civil law we often refer to a continuing or recurring cause of action
Similarly even in criminal law the expression continuing offence is frequently used
As observed by Beaumount C J in Emperor vs Chhotalal Amarchand  AIR 1937 Bom 1 FB the expression continuing offence is not a very happy expression
It assumes says the learned Chief Justice 432  that you can have a continuing offence in the sense in which you can have a continuing tort or a continuing breach of contract and I doubt myself whether the assumption is well founded having regard to the provisions of the Criminal Procedure Code as to the framing of charges and as to the charges which can be tried at one and the same trial
It is quite clear that you could not charge a man with committing an offence de die in diem  over a substantial period
 Even so this expression has acquired a well recognised meaning in criminal law
If an act committed by an accused person constitutes an offence and if that act continues from day to day then from day to day a fresh offence is committed by the accused so long as the act continues
Normally and in the ordinary course an offence is committed only once
But we may have offences which can be committed from day to day and it is offences falling in this latter category that are described as continuing offences
 Accordingly the High Court of Bombay held in Bhiwandiwalla s case supra that the failure to apply for registration of the factory under the and to give notice of occupation thereof was not a continuing offence but the running of the factory without a licence issued thereunder was a continuing offence
Section 39 of the Indian Mines Act 1923 which came up for consideration before the Patna High Court in The State vs Kunja Behari Chandra  Ors
on which reliance was placed by the Revenue is a case of continuing offence
Section 39 provided 39
Whoever contravenes any provision of this Act or of any regulation rule or bye law or of any order made thereunder for the contravention of which no penalty is hereinafter provided shall be punishable with fine which may extend to one thousand rupees and in the case of a continuing contravention with a further fine which may extend to one hundred rupees for every day on which the offender is proved to have persisted in the contravention after the date of the first conviction
 433 In this case the language of the section itself made it obvious that its violation resulted in a continuing offence
The true principle appears to be that where the wrong complained of is the omission to perform a positive duty requiring a person to do a certain act the test to determine whether such a wrong is a continuing one is whether the duty in question is one which requires him to continue to do that act
Breach of a covenant to keep the premises in good repair breach of a continuing guarantee obstruction to a right of the way obstruction to the right of a person to the unobstructed flow of water refusal by a man to maintain his wife and children whom he ii bound to maintain under law and the carrying on of mining operations or the running of a factory without complying with the measures intended for the safety and well being of workmen may be illustrations of continuing breaches or wrongs giving rise to civil or criminal liability
as the case my be de die in diem
In Balkrishna Savalram Pujari  Ors
vs Shree Dayaneshwar Maharaj Sansthan  Ors
Gajendragadkar J as he then was observed It is the very essence of a continuing wrong that it is an act which creates a continuing source of injury and renders the doer of the act responsible and liable for the continuance of the said injury
If the wrongful act causes an injury which is complete there is no continuing wrong even though the damage resulting from the act may continue
If however a wrongful act is of such a character that the injury caused by it itself continue then the act constitutes a continuing wrong
In this connection it is necessary to draw a distinction between the injury caused by the wrongful act and what may be described at the effect of the said injury
 Section 18 of the Act with which we are concerned in this case however does not require the assessee to file a return during every month after the last day to file it is over
Non performance of any of the acts mentioned in section 181a of Act gives rise to a single default and to a single penalty the measure of which 434 however is geared up to the time lag between the last date on which the return has to be fled and the date on which it is filed
The default if any committed is committed on the last date allowed to file the return
The default cannot be one committed every month thereafter
The words for every month during which the default continued  indicate only the multiplier to be adopted in determining the quantum of penalty and do not have the effect of making the default in question a continuing one
Nor do they make the amended provisions modifying the penalty applicable to earlier defaults in the absence of necessary provisions in the amending Acts
The principle underlying section 6 of the General Clauses Act is clearly applicable to these cases
It may be stated here that the majority of the High Courts in India have also taken the same view
In the result we hold that where the default complained of is one falling under sectionla of the Act the penalty has to be computed in accordance with the law in force on the last day on which the return in question had to be filed
Neither the amendment made in 1964 nor the amendment made in 1969 has retrospective effect
The appeals therefore fail and are dismissed with costs
Hearing fee one set
SR Appeals dismissed


Summary:
The assessee respondent filed his Wealth Tax returns for the assessment years 1964 65 and 1965 66 on March 18 1971 while he was required by section D 141 of the Act to file the return for the assessment year 1964 65 on or before June 30 1964 and the return for the assessment year 1965 66 on or before June 30 1965
The Wealth Tax officer completed the assessment for the said years on March 22 1971 and also commenced proceedings for levying penalty under section 181 a of the Act for the late submission of returns
The Wealth Tax officer levied the penalties for different periods at different rates as provided by the 1964 and 1969 Amendments
treating the failure to file the return in time as a continuing offence
The orders levying penalties were upheld in appeal by the Appellate Assistant Commissioner and the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal Amritsar Bench Amritsar
A consolidated reference made by the Tribunal at the instance of the assessee was answered by the High Court of Punjab in favour of the assessee after rejecting the contention of the department that the default or failure to file the return in time was a continuing default and that the penalty had to be computed for the period prior to April 1 1965 in accordance with section 18 as it stood prior to its amendment by the Wealth tax Amendment Act 1964 for the period between April 1 1965 to March 31 1969 in accordance with section 18 of the Act as amended by the Wealth tax Amendment Act 1964 and for the period between April 1 1969 to March 18 1971 on which date the returns were filed in accordance with section 18 of the Act as amended by the Finance Act 1969
Aggrieved by the decision of the High Court the Department has filed these appeals under Article 136 of the Constitution
G Dismissing the appeals the Court  HELD 11
Where the default complained of is one falling under section 181 a of the Wealth Tax Act the penalty has to be computed m accordance with the law in force on the last day on which the return in question had to be filed
Neither the amendment made in 1964 nor the amendment made in 1969 has retrospective effect
434 C D 420 12
Section 18 of the Wealth Tax Act does not require the assessee to file a return during every month after the last day to file it is over
Non performance of any of the acts mentioned in section 181 a of the Act gives rise to a single default and to a single penalty the measure of which however is geared up to the time lag between the last date on which the return has to be filed and the date on which it is filed
The default if any committed is committed on the last date allowed to file the return
The default cannot be one committed every month thereafter
433 G H 434 A 13
The words for every month during which the default continued indicate only the multiplier to be adopted in determining the quantum of penalty and do not have the effect of making the default in question a continuing one
Nor do they make the amended provisions modifying the penalty applicable to earlier defaults in the absence of necessary provisions in the amending Acts
The principle underlying section 6 of the General Clauses Act is clearly applicable to these cases
434 B C 21
A liability in law ordinarily arises out of an act of commission or an act of omission
When a person does an act which law prohibits him from doing it and attaches a penalty for doing it he is stated to have committed an act of commission which amounts to a wrong in the eye of law
Similarly when a person omits to do an act which is required by law to be performed by him and attaches a penalty for such omission he is said to have committed an act of omission which is also a wrong in the eye of law
Ordinarily a wrongful act or failure to perform an act required by law to be done becomes a completed act of commission or of omission as the case may be as soon as the wrongful act is committed in the former case and when the time prescribed by law to perform an act expires in the latter case and the liability arising therefore gets fastened as soon as the act of commission or of omission is completed
The extent of that liability is ordinarily measured according to the law in force at the time of such completion
In the case of acts amounting to crimes the punishment to be imposed cannot be enhanced at all under our Constitution by any subsequent legislation by reason of Article 20I of the Constitution which declares that no person shall be subjected to a penalty greater than that which might have been inflicted under the law in force at the time of the commission of the offence
In other cases however even though the liability may be enhanced it can only be a subsequent law of course subject to the Constitution which either by express words or by necessary implication provides for such enhancement
429 G H 430 A D 22
The distinctive nature of a continuing wrong is that the law that is violated makes the wrongdoer continuously liable for penalty
A wrong or default which is complete but whose effect may continue to be felt even after its completion is however not a continuing wrong or default
430 D E 23
The court should not be eager to hold that an act or omission is a continuing wrong or default unless there are words in the statute concerned which make out that such was the intention of the legislature
In the instant case when ever the question of levying penalty arises what has to be first considered is whether the assessee has failed without reasonable cause to file the return as re 421 quired by law and if it is held that he has failed to do so then penalty has to be levied in accordance with the measure provided in the Act
When the default is the filing of a delayed return the penalty may be correlated to the time lag between the last day for filing it without penalty and the day on which it is filed and the quantum of tax or wealth involved in the case for purposes of determining the quantum of penalty but the default however is only one which takes place on the expiry of the last day for filing the return without penalty and not a continuing one
The default in question does not however give rise to a fresh cause of action every day
430 E H 24
Where the wrong complained of is the omission to perform a positive duty requiring a person to do a certain act the test to determine whether such a wrong is a continuing one is whether the duty in question is one which requires him to continue to do that act
Breach or a covenant to keep the premises in good repair breach of a continuing guarantee obstruction to a right of way obstruction to the right of a person to the unobstructed flow of water refusal by a man to maintain his wife and children whom he is bound to maintain under law and the carrying on of mining operations or the running of a factory without complying with the measures intended for the safety and well being of workmen may be illustrations of continuing breaches or wrongs giving rise to civil or criminal liability as the case may be de die in diem
433 A D Hole vs Chard Union  quoted with approval
State vs A Bhiwandiwalla A I R  The State vs Kunja Behari Chandra and Ors
AIR 1954 Patna 371 approved Balkrishna Savalram Pujari and Ors
vs Shree Dayaneshwar Maharaj Sansthan and Ors 1959 Supp 2 SCR 476 referred to