1976 (3) TMI 16 - HC - Income Tax

Summary

Issues involved:
The issues involved in this case are the validity of a notice issued by the Income-tax Officer under sections 147(a)/148 of the Income-tax Act, 1961, the timeliness of filing the income-tax return for the year 1972-73, and the jurisdiction of the Income-tax Officer to assess the petitioner's income.

Validity of Notice:
The petitioner, a partnership firm, failed to file the income-tax return for the year 1972-73 within the prescribed period, submitting it only on May 12, 1975, beyond the deadline of March 31, 1975. The Income-tax Officer issued a notice under sections 147(a)/148 of the Act on July 17, 1975, requiring the petitioner to file the return within thirty days. The petitioner challenged the validity of the notice on grounds including the return already being filed and pending, the assessment being time-barred, and lack of material for the Income-tax Officer to believe income had escaped assessment. The court found that since the return was filed beyond the deadline, it was invalid, and the notice was justified under section 147 of the Act.

Timeliness of Income-tax Return:
The accounting year in question was 1971-72, with the assessment year being 1972-73. The petitioner was required to file the return by July 31, 1972, with a maximum extension granted until March 31, 1975. The petitioner failed to file the return within this extended period, leading the Income-tax Officer to issue the notice. The court held that the return filed on May 12, 1975, was beyond the prescribed deadline, rendering it invalid and justifying the notice issued by the Income-tax Officer.

Jurisdiction of Income-tax Officer:
The petitioner argued that the Income-tax Officer should have proceeded to pass the assessment order under section 144 of the Act when the return was not furnished. However, the court found that no notice under section 139(2) of the Act had been issued by the Income-tax Officer to the petitioner. As a result, the provisions of section 153(1)(a)(iii) were deemed inapplicable, and the Income-tax Officer was justified in issuing the notice under section 148 of the Act. The court dismissed the petition, upholding the validity of the notice and the actions of the Income-tax Officer.

This judgment highlights the importance of timely filing income-tax returns and the authority of the Income-tax Officer to issue notices for assessment based on non-compliance with filing deadlines.