Essence Of A Benami Transaction

By
Vijay Pal Dalmia, Advocate
Supreme Court of India & Delhi High Court
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The essence of a benami is the intention of the party or parties concerned; and not un-often such intention is shrouded in a thick veil which cannot be easily pierced through. But such difficulties do not relieve the person asserting the transaction to be benami of any serious onus that rests on him; nor justify the acceptance of mere conjectures or surmises as a substitute for proof. The reason is that a deed is a solemn documents prepared and executed after considerable deliberation and the person expressly shown as the purchaser or transferee in the deed, starts with the initial presumption in his favour that the apparent state of affairs is the real state of affairs. Though the question, whether a particular sale is benami