JUDGMENT

JASWANT SINGH, J.

( 1 ) THESE appeals Nos. 1399 to 1403 of 1970 and 301 of 1974 by certificates granted by the High court of Madras shall be disposed of together by this judgment as they raise common question of law and fact.

( 2 ) THE circumstances giving rise to these appeals are: The late R. Sridharan along with his father and brothers constituted a Hindu undivided family governed by Mitakshara law. On 28/06/1952, while he was still unmarried, a partition took place between him, his brothers and his father. As a result of this partition, a block of shares in T. V. Sundaram iyengar and Sons Private Limited and three other limited companies fell to his share. On 14/06/1956, Sridharan married Rosa Maria Steinbchler, a Christian woman of Austrian descent, under the Special Marriage Act, 1954. On 29/11/1957, a son named Nicolas Sundaram was born out of this wedlock. For the assessment years 1957-58 and 1958-59, Sridharan was assessed to income tax and wealth tax in the status of an individual on his own declaration to that effect. In the assessment proceedings in respect of income tax and wealth tax for the assessment years 1959-60, 1960-61 and 1961-62 and in the assessment p