2020 (4) TMI 440 - HC - Income Tax

Validity of order of Settlement Commission - full and true disclosure or not - HELD THAT - It is an admitted position that on identical facts in the case of two of the assessees namely, M/s. Shreyans Corporation and Samarth India, this court by a judgment and order dated 2019 (11) TMI 874 - GUJARAT HIGH COURT has dismissed the petitions by holding that there is no infirmity in the impugned order passed by the Settlement Commission. Since the facts and contentions in all these three petitions are similar to the facts and contentions of the above referred petitions, except that the amount involved in each case is different, it is not necessary to set out the facts and contentions in detail. This court does not find any infirmity in the impugned order dated 17.7.2018 passed by the Settlement Commission, so as to warrant interference. The petitions, therefore, fail and are, accordingly, summarily dismissed.

Summary

Issues:
Challenging order of Income Tax Settlement Commission for assessment years 2004-2005 and 2005-2006 in cases of M/s. M.D. International and M/s. Lakhani Impex.

Analysis:

1. Common Order and Petitions:
- The three petitions challenged a common order dated 17.7.2018 by the Income Tax Settlement Commission for assessment years 2004-2005 and 2005-2006 in the cases of M/s. M.D. International and M/s. Lakhani Impex. The petitions were heard together due to common facts and contentions.

2. Petitioner's Challenge:
- The Principal Commissioner of Income Tax-1, Surat, filed petitions under Article 226 of the Constitution of India challenging the order dated 17.7.2018 by the Settlement Commission. The petitions specifically targeted the assessments for the mentioned years in the cases of M/s. M.D. International and M/s. Lakhani Impex.

3. Court Proceedings:
- Mr. Nikunt Raval, representing Mrs. Kalpana Raval, the senior standing counsel for the petitioner, presented arguments before the court. The court noted that similar petitions concerning other assesses had been dismissed previously by a judgment on 7.10.2019 due to no identified infirmities in the Settlement Commission's orders.

4. Judicial Precedent:
- The court referred to a previous judgment dated 7.10.2019 concerning M/s. Shreyans Corporation and Samarth India, where similar petitions were dismissed. The court found no substantial differences in the facts and contentions of the present petitions compared to the earlier ones, except for the varying amounts involved.

5. Judicial Decision:
- Based on the reasoning and decision from the previous judgment on similar cases, the court found no grounds to interfere with the impugned order dated 17.7.2018 passed by the Settlement Commission. Consequently, the court summarily dismissed the petitions, as there was no identified infirmity warranting intervention.

This comprehensive analysis outlines the common order challenged by the petitioner, the court proceedings, the reference to previous judgments, and the ultimate decision of the court to dismiss the petitions based on established legal precedents and lack of substantial differences in the cases at hand.