2018 (12) TMI 1656 - HC - Income Tax

Maintainability of writ petition against assessment order - Alternative remedy of appeal - approaching the wrong forum under bona fide mistake - HELD THAT - Since the petitioner has an alternative remedy of appeal before the appellate authority, this writ petition stands disposed of with a direction that if the petitioner approaches the appellate authority by filing an appeal along with an application for condonation of delay within a period of four weeks from today, the appellate authority shall take into consideration all the contentions raised by the petitioner. While considering the prayer for condonation of delay, the Appellate Authority shall also take into consideration the period of pendency of this writ petition, i.e. from 22.12.2017 till today, for approaching the wrong forum under bona fide mistake. Till filing of the appeal, the interim order passed by this Court on 5.2.2018 shall continue.

Summary

Issues:
1. Application for amendment rejected
2. Challenge to assessment order and demand notice
3. Alternative remedy of appeal

Application for Amendment Rejected:
In the judgment, the court addressed an application for amendment, noting that the Annexure-4, although available to be challenged at the time of filing the writ petition, was not challenged. The court considered it an afterthought and deemed it inappropriate to allow the amendment application at that stage. Consequently, the prayer for amendment was rejected, and the I.A. was dismissed.

Challenge to Assessment Order and Demand Notice:
The writ petition challenged the assessment order dated 31.11.2017 under Annexure-1 and the demand notice under Annexure-2 issued by the Assistant Commissioner of Income Tax, Rourkela Circle, Rourkela. The court, after hearing the counsel for both parties, disposed of the writ petition. It directed the petitioner to approach the appellate authority by filing an appeal with an application for condonation of delay within four weeks. The appellate authority was instructed to consider all contentions raised by the petitioner, taking into account the period of pendency of the writ petition for approaching the wrong forum under a bona fide mistake. The interim order passed by the court on 5.2.2018 was to continue until the appeal was filed.

Alternative Remedy of Appeal:
The court emphasized that since the petitioner had an alternative remedy of appeal before the appellate authority, the writ petition was disposed of with the mentioned directions. It highlighted the importance of the petitioner availing the appellate remedy within the specified timeline and underlined that the appellate authority should consider all aspects, including the period of pendency of the writ petition, when deciding on the appeal. Additionally, the court ordered the return of original documents filed by the petitioner after substituting them with attested photo copies.