1. This reference under section 66(1) of the Income-tax Act, 1922 (hereinafter called the Act) is filed by the Commissioner of Income-tax Karachi (Central), Karachi.
2. The relevant facts as stated in the application are that in the assessment year 1970-71 (Accounting period ending on 30-6-1970), the respondent declared dividend income of Rs. 16,360, from Messrs Moghal Tobacco Company Limited, but claimed exemption to payment of tax thereon on the ground that the said dividend was received from the Company the profits whereof were exempted from the tax under section 15-BB of the Act. The Income-tax Officer, however, rejected the claim of the respondent and brought the said income to tax as per order of assessment dated 30-1-1969. However, on appeal the Income-tax Appellate Tribunal set aside the order of the Income-tax Officer by the order dated 5-11-1971.
3. Therefore, the applicant has filed the present application raising the following question of law : "Whether on the facts and in the circumstances of the case the Income-tax Appellate Tribunal was justified in holding that dividends received by the assessee on shares of Company enjoying the benefit of section 15-BB of the Income-tax Act are exempt from tax and not liable to be included in the total income of the shareholder."
A similar question was raised in Income-tax References Nos. 51, 55, 59, and 104 of 1972, and in a number of other cases reported as Commissioner of Income-tax, Karachi (East) v. Yasin Ali Akbar H. Ibrahim, PLD 1982 Kar. 847, and the same has been answered by this Court as follows : "14. In view of the above discussions our answer to the question framed in the reference is that the assessm ent orders relating to a period prior to 20th December, 1971 including the dividends received by the assessee from the Companies covered under section 15-BB as part of the income were not validated by the Finance Ordinance No. XXI of 1972 during the pendency of the present references/cases and on the facts and in circumstances of the cases the Income-tax Appellate Tribunal was justified in the holding that the dividends! Received by the assessee on the shares of the Companies enjoying the benefit of section 15-BB of the Income-tax Act are exempt from tax and) not liable to be included in the total income of the shareholders."
It is not necessary for us to repeat the reasons recorded therein and for the same reasons as given in the cited case we answer the question in the above terms, leaving the parties to bear their own costs as the respondents are absent today before us.