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Challenge to notices issued under section 148 of the Income-tax Act, 1961. Analysis: The petitioner challenged eight notices issued under section 148 of the Income-tax Act, 1961. The notices were for the assessment years 1953-54, 1954-55, 1955-56, 1956-57, 1957-58, 1958-59, 1959-60, and 1960-61. The petitioner's advocate argued that the recorded reasons for issuing the notices were identical for all years, suggesting a lack of individual assessment. The main contention raised was the failure to comply with the essential pre-conditions for issuing a notice under section 148. The petitioner relied on legal precedents to support the argument that the Income-tax Officer must believe income has escaped assessment due to the assessee's failure to disclose all relevant facts. The petitioner contended that the notices were issued without fulfilling these pre-conditions, rendering them void. The court examined the reasons recorded by the Income-tax Officers for issuing the notices. The specific reason for the assessment year 1960-61 was related to the collection of sales tax on cement sales. The accumulated surplus due to the difference between sales tax on gross price and net price amounted to a significant sum. The court emphasized the importance of the Income-tax Officer forming a belief that income had escaped assessment due to the assessee's failure to disclose all material facts. The court referenced previous judgments to support the requirement of fulfilling pre-conditions before issuing a notice under section 148. The court rejected the revenue's argument that a particular entry in the covering sheet fulfilled the condition precedent for issuing notices under section 148. The court held that the entry did not demonstrate a belief that income had escaped assessment due to the assessee's failure to disclose all relevant facts. The court deemed this absence of belief as a fatal flaw in the impugned notices, rendering them without jurisdiction and void. The court concluded the judgment on this single point, clarifying that it did not address other issues in the application. In the final ruling, the court granted the petitioner's application, making the rule absolute. The court issued a writ of mandamus directing the respondent to recall, cancel, and withdraw the impugned notices for the mentioned assessment years and to refrain from giving effect to them. The court made no order regarding costs, concluding the judgment.
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