2011 (11) TMI 342 - HC - Wealth-tax

Intimation under 16(1) is not an order thus revision under sec 25 not main tenable - Held That - Intimation is an appealable order under the provisions of Section 23 and 23A of the said Wealth Tax Tax 1957. If any intimation/order is appealable before the first appellate authority there is no reason why the Commissioner cannot invoke his revisional powers under Section 25 of the Act which confers upon him suo moto revisional powers

Summary

Issues:
Challenge to rejection of revision petition under Section 25 of the Wealth Tax Act for multiple assessment years; Interpretation of 'intimation' as an 'order'; Deductibility of interest bearing security deposit; Maintainability of revision petition against 'intimation' under Section 16(1) of the Act.

Analysis:
The petitioner, a hotel company, challenged the Commissioner of Wealth Tax's order rejecting the revision petition under Section 25 of the Wealth Tax Act for various assessment years. The Commissioner held that the revision petition against an 'intimation' under Section 16(1) was not maintainable as it was not considered an 'order'. The petitioner argued that amendments in the Income Tax Act deemed such 'intimations' as 'orders' for a specific period, and similar provisions applied to the Wealth Tax Act. The Revenue contended that the 'intimation' could not be considered an 'order' due to the absence of relevant amendments for the assessment years in question.

The main dispute centered around the deductibility of an interest-bearing security deposit taken by the petitioner from another company. Previous judgments by the ITAT and the High Court had ruled in favor of the petitioner, stating that the deposit was a deductible liability while computing the net wealth under the Wealth Tax Act. Despite these decisions, the Assessing Officer did not allow the deduction in the 'intimation' under Section 16(1), leading to the revision petition by the petitioner.

The High Court found that the 'intimation' under Section 16(1) was indeed appealable and constituted an 'order' under the Wealth Tax Act. The Court criticized the Commissioner for dismissing the revision petitions as not maintainable, highlighting that the Commissioner had the authority to invoke revisional powers under Section 25 of the Act. The Court emphasized that if an order was appealable, the Commissioner could exercise revisional powers either suo moto or upon application by the assessee. Therefore, the Court set aside the Commissioner's order and directed a fresh decision on the revision petitions in accordance with the law.

In conclusion, the High Court ruled in favor of the petitioner, establishing the 'intimation' under Section 16(1) as an appealable 'order' and reinstating the revision petitions for further consideration by the Commissioner of Wealth Tax.