This is an appeal by The Raleigh Investment Co., Ltd., from a judgment of the Federal Court of India1 in its Civil Appellate Jurisdiction reversing a decree passed by a Special Bench of the High Court of Calcutta2 in its Ordinary Original Civil Jurisdiction.

The suit in which that decree was passed was brought by the appellant against the respondent, the Governor-General in Council, claiming repayment of Rs. 4,35,295-5-0, part of a larger sum paid by the appellant under an assessment to income-tax made upon it. The basis of this claim was that in the computation of assessable income effect has been given to a provision of the Income-tax Act, which in the submission of the appellant was ultra vires the Indian Legislature, and that the assessment was therefore wrong.

The respondent contended first, that the impugned provision was not ultra vires the Indian Legislature and second that, whether the impugned provision was or was not ultra vires, the High Court in its ordinary civil jurisdiction was precluded from entertaining the suit by reason of section 226 of the Government of India Act, 1935 and also by reason of section 67 of the Indian Income-tax Act, 1922.

The High Cou