1977 (5) TMI 10 - HC - Income Tax

Summary

Issues: Validity of notices issued under section 147 of the Income-tax Act for multiple assessment years

Validity of notice under clause (a) of section 147 for the assessment year 1964-65:
The petitioner challenged notices issued by the Income-tax Officer under section 147 for various assessment years. The notice for 1964-65 was issued under clause (a) of section 147. The Income-tax Officer relied on information regarding an employee loaned to the assessee-company, leading to the inference that certain benefits should have come from other entities. The court examined whether this information was disclosed during the original assessment. It was found that the information had not been disclosed, thus upholding the validity of the notice under section 147(a) for the assessment year 1964-65.

Validity of notices under clause (b) of section 147 for other assessment years:
Notices for the remaining years were issued under clause (b) of section 147 based on audit objections raised by the internal audit section. The court considered whether these notices were based on new information post the original assessments. Referring to a previous ruling, the court held that information from the audit department constitutes "information" under section 147. Therefore, the court rejected the argument that the Income-tax Officer lacked the necessary information to form a belief that income had escaped assessment. Consequently, all the notices under section 147 were deemed legal.

Conclusion:
The court dismissed the petition, ruling in favor of the Income-tax Officer. The petitioner was directed to bear their own costs, and the court found none of the notices under section 147 of the Income-tax Act to be illegal.