2008 (5) TMI 382 - HC - Income Tax

Rectification of an order section 154 - the petitioner has been filing repeated applications under Section 154 and that this practice is not to be encouraged. The petitioner has agreed that if he is given an opportunity of hearing in respect of his application under Section 154, which was dismissed on 26.04.2005, no further applications under Section 154 would be filed in respect of the very same order. He also undertook that the fourth application, which has purportedly been filed under Section 154 of the said Act, could also be deemed to have been withdrawn. Held that Considering the chequered history of this case and the somewhat convoluted facts, we are of the view that it would serve the ends of justice if the entire proceedings are cut short and the petitioner is given a final opportunity to present his case with regard to his application under Section 154, which had been dismissed by the impugned order dated 26.04.2005. We note from the impugned order itself that the petitioner was not given a personal hearing before disposing of the said application. Consequently, we set aside the impugned order dated 26.04.2005 and direct the Commissioner of Income-tax (Appeals), New Delhi to grant the opportunity of hearing to the petitioner and thereafter pass an order on the said application in accordance with law.

Summary

Issues:
1. Transfer of case under Section 127(2) of the Income-tax Act, 1961.
2. Disposal of application under Section 154 without opportunity of hearing.

Analysis:
1. The petitioner challenged the transfer of the case from Gurgaon to Delhi under Section 127(2) of the Income-tax Act, 1961. The petitioner contended that only assessment proceedings, not rectification applications, could be transferred. However, during the hearing, the petitioner agreed not to press this point, thus withdrawing the grievance related to the transfer.

2. The petitioner's second grievance was regarding the disposal of the application under Section 154 without being granted an opportunity of hearing. The petitioner had filed multiple applications seeking rectification of the same order, which was not encouraged. The petitioner agreed that if given a hearing for the application dismissed on 26.04.2005, no further applications under Section 154 would be filed for the same order. The petitioner also agreed to withdraw the fourth application filed under Section 154.

3. Considering the history of the case and the need to ensure justice, the court decided to grant the petitioner a final opportunity to present his case regarding the application under Section 154, which was previously dismissed without a personal hearing. The court set aside the order dated 26.04.2005 and directed the Commissioner of Income-tax (Appeals), New Delhi to provide the petitioner with a hearing and pass an order in accordance with the law.

4. The court explicitly stated that the fourth application filed by the petitioner would be considered withdrawn. Additionally, the petitioner was barred from raising the issue of transfer from Gurgaon to New Delhi further and from filing any more applications under Section 154 concerning the same appellate orders. The petitioner was directed to appear before the Commissioner of Income-tax (Appeals)-XXV, New Delhi on a specified date for a hearing and subsequent order issuance.

This judgment, delivered by Hon'ble Mr. Justice Badar Durrez Ahmed and Hon'ble Mr. Justice V.K. Jain on May 5, 2010, disposed of the writ petitions by providing specific directions to address the grievances raised by the petitioner regarding the transfer of the case and the disposal of the application under Section 154.