INTERPRETATION OF STATUES

A. Thangal Kunju Musaliar

Group 1 Vs.
M. Venkitachalam Potti and Ors
Meaning of Interpretation
Interpretation means the art of finding out the true sense of an enactment by
giving the words of the enactment their natural and ordinary meaning. It is the
process of ascertaining the true meaning of the words used in a statute.

Object
Expressed

Intention of
legislature

Implied
 AIDS FOR INTERPRETATION

Internal External
Aids Aids

Rules

Literal Mischief
Golden
Rule Rule
Rule
 Petitioner
Govt passed Act,1949
FACTS Residence of Quilon
MD of his company
sec 5 investigation and report to gov
sec 6 appoint such person
Assessed to IT for 1942 and
1943

26th Nov,1949 New law came into force 1st july 1949
Govt asked to investigate 26th july,1949 travancore and cochin integrated
cases of 1942 and 1943 notification in the gazatte all existing laws will continue

25th feb,1950
Petitioner produced the books
10th dec, 1949 petitioner rcv letter agreement bet president and
Before commission submit the
from secretary of the commission rajpramukh
report
to produce on or before 21 dec, 1949 IT Act,1922 extended to TandC
constitution came into force

On 21st Nov,1951
ITO said investigation
18th Oct,1951
not only for 1942 and 43 but from In april Govt said to
M. Venkitachalam
1940 till last assessed year transfer the cases to
Potty
ITO by notification central
 March, 1952 16th May 1952
feb ,1952 Writ Petition in the HC (prohibition)
respondent to petitioner
Petitioner to respondent R1 ITO, R2 Commission
he will investigate
letter illegal

Petitioner appeal
Bench of 3 Judges Respondent gave
21 of 1954
R2 had powers counter affidavit
Respondents appeal
R1 should go only for 2yrs R1 stated he had authority
22 of 1954

in 22 of 1954 no writ issued

Jurisdiction challenged by R2
Both appeals court thought fit to refer to
court stated R1 communicated
20th sept, IT
and stayed in Travancore
1955 Commission

Hence
Case 21 of 1954
case 22 of 1954
Dismissed with
cost
 ISSUES
 Whether the writ petition filed against income tax official and the investigation
commission is maintainable ?

 Whether section 5(1) of the Travancore Act violated fundamental right under
Article 14 of the Constitution of India?

 Whether the same Class of persons dealt with under section 5(1) of the
Travancore Act XIV of 1124 were intended to and could be dealt with under the
provisions of section 47 of the Travancore Act 1121?
 1 2
What was the law before the What was the mischief for
making of the Act? which the law did not
provide?

MISCHIEF
RULE

3 4
What is the remedy that What is the reason of the
the Act has provided? remedy?
BENGAL IMMUNITY CO. COMMISSIONER OF INCOME-TAX.
V/S V/S
STATE OF BIHAR SMT. SODRA DEVI

PARAYAN KANDIYAL ERAVAT KANAPARAVAN KALLIANI

AMMA
V/S
K DEVI
 Every Statutes starts with a
Preamble
preamble. It states the
intention of the legislature.

Logically admissible aid to

interpretation
TOOLS OF Parliamentary
Supreme court from last several

INTERPRETATION History years

made refrence to the the history .
Reports made by Comission

Speech Of The speeches of the ministers

give the exact intention of the
Ministers legislature.

Refrence was made to the Indian states finance enquiry reports (1948-49) in our Case but the documents
are not available.
 As it is
LIBERAL
Nelson Motis V/s Union of India
RULE -Give Meaning to the word

Modification allowed to certain extent

Not to Ruin the plain meaning

GOLDEN
RULE Harmonise object and intention

Lee v/s Knapp (1967)

U.P Bhoodan Yojna Samiti v/s Braj Kishore (1988)

 The fact that the judge has greater The reliance on extrinsic aids and their
flexibility with this rule associated problems

That the use of this rule is limited due

The fact that this rule helps achieve
to
Parliamentary intent
the purposive approach

It means that judges can rewrite Statute

Helps avoid absurdity and Law, which only Parliament is allowed to
do and it must be possible to discover the
injustice
mischief in order for the rule to be used

Regarded by most modern

Determining Parliaments supposed
commentators as the best of the three
intention requires the use of a wide range
rules, giving effect as it does to the true
of aids and presumptions.
intention of Parliament
Nandan Gajendragadkar
Radhika Maheshwari
Shriya Kulkarni
Anaya Gaikwad
Abhay Doke