Virendra Singh Yadav Son Of Dilip Singh ... vs Income Tax Officer on 8 March, 2022
"I do not think the words 'it shall be lawful' are in themselves ambiguous at all.
They are apt words to express that a power is given; and as, prima facie, the
donee of a power may either exercise it or leave it unused, it is not inaccurate to
say that, prima facie, they are equivalent to saying that the donee may do it; but if
the object for which the power is conferred is for the purpose of enforcing a right,
there may be a duty cast on the donee of the power, to exer- cise it for the
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ITA No. 385/JP/2022
Dilip Singh Yadav vs. ITO
benefit of those who have that right, when required on their behalf. Where there
is such a duty, it is not inaccu- rate to say that the words conferring the power are
equivalent to saying that the donee must exercise it. It by no means fol- lows that
because there is a duty cast on the donee of a power to exercise it, that
mandamus lies to enforce it: that depends on the nature of the duty and the
position of the donee".