Guidelines for alternative arrangements for safe custody of valuable assets and books of accounts seized u/s 132. - Income Tax - 1580/CBDT

INSTRUCTION NO. 1580/CBDT Dated: October 17, 1984 Guidelines regarding maintenance of strong rooms for safe custody of valuable assets and books of accounts/documents are contained in Boards letter F.No.I-11020/34/76-Ad. IX dated 19th June 1978. However at certain places facility of strong room may not be available. This has necessitated the issue of these guidelines prescribing alternative arrangements. 2. In places where the strong room facility is not available, Bank lockers should be operated by 2 senior officers jointly. At Commissioner's Head-quarters one officer may be chosen from Intelligence Unit and the other form the Commissioners office. In other places, two officers may operate the locker jointly. Where the Assessing officer happens to be the IAC Assessment, he along with some other Senior ITO may operate the locker. Registers I and II prescribed under the above mentioned Board's guidelines dated 19th June, 1978 should also be maintained with suitable modifications in respect of operation of the locker. 3. Where Bank lockers are not available at all or the Bank lockers available may not be big enough in size sealed packages containing valuables prepared in accordance with the Rule 112(10) of Income Tax rules should be put in a bag of strong material which should again be sealed and an identification tag should be securely fixed to the bag so as to identify the packages within it fully. This bag may be deposited with any branch of RBI, SBI or its subsidiary, any Nationalised Bank or a Government Treasury in the joint names of two senior officers not below the rank of ITO. Again as mentioned in para 2 above at Commissioner's Headquarters one such officer should be taken from Intelligence and the other from the Commissioners office. At places other than Commissioners Headquarters the bag contains sealed packages may be deposited in the joint names of two officers. Where the IAC assessment happens to be the assessing officer, he alongwith a senior ITO may deposit the bag in their joint names. Register II prescribed in the above mentioned Boards letter dated 19th June, 1978 in respect of strong room should be maintained to record the deposit and removal of the bag containing sealed packages in/out of the Bank. 4. In respect of locker as well as the bag containing sealed packages, it should be made clear to the Banks that locker has been hired and/or bag containing sealed packages have been deposited by others from time to time depending upon the exigencies of the situation like transfer/retirement etc. of the officers. 5. Whenever any officer who is operating the locker or in whose name the bag containing sealed packages has been deposited leaves the station on transfer/retirement, a complete handing and taking over memo of the sealed packages of valuables kept in the locker/bag should be drawn up under the signatures of the transferred and the relieving officer. Copy of this memo should be endorsed to the Commissioner. 6. The instructions contained in para 5 of Board's letter F.No.I-11020/34/76-Ad-IX dated the 19th June, 1978 will apply mutuatis mutuandis in respect of each locker hired by the Department.