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TMI Blog1978 (8) TMI 178X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... nt evasion of tax dismissed - Held that:- Appeal dismissed. No witness on behalf of the prosecution has come forward to testify that the secret books of account did not contain any entry relating to the business dealings of Kallupalam Auto Stores which stands registered in the name of Marykutty and which also is housed in the same building in which Kallupalam Lad's Jewellery Mart is housed. The connection of the respondents with the entries in the secret books of account could also have been established by producing some of the customers whose names are admittedly to be found in the secret books of account to testify that the deals evidenced by the entries were transacted by them with the Kallupalam Lad's Jewellery Mart of which the respond ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... have no legs to stand upon. It appears that the respondents had submitted returns of their aforesaid firm's sales turnover to the Sales Tax Officer, Kottayam II Circle, for the months of January, February and March, 1969, on February 18, 1969, March 18, 1969, and April 18, 1969, respectively, declaring a total sales turnover of Rs. 47,431 during January, 1969, Rs. 25,025.20 during February, 1969, and Rs. 35,712.97 during March, 1969. On receipt of special information that the turnovers shown in the aforesaid returns were far below the actual turnovers, the Kottayam Sales Tax Intelligence Squad and the Sales Tax Central Intelligence Squad headed by the Inspecting Assistant Commissioner (Intelligence), Agricultural Income-tax and Sales Tax, T ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... he account books intended for official purposes") and that as against the figures declared in the aforesaid returns, the secret books of account revealed a total turnover of Rs. 1,34,899.16 for January, 1969, a turnover of Rs. 87,777.39 for February, 1969, and a turnover of Rs. 1,11,181.85 for March, 1969, the Inspecting Assistant Commissioner directed the Sales Tax Intelligence Officer, Kottayam, who was one of the members of the inspecting party led by him, to seize both the sets of account books which was duly done by the latter. On the basis of the result of the aforesaid inspection conducted on February 20, 1970, the Sales Tax Officer, Kottayam II Circle, filed three complaints in the Court of the District Magistrate, Kottayam, allegin ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... t runs counter to the well-recongnised principle that Prima facie public servants must be presumed to act honestly and conscientiously and their evidence has to be assessed on its intrinsic worth and cannot be discarded merely on the ground that being public servants they are interested in the success of their case. It is equally true that we can ill-afford to accept as statement of law the observations of the High Court to the effect that "the mere fact that two sets of accounts which are conflicting are being maintained, it cannot be taken that the account books evidencing less turnover or profits are false. It may well be that the secret accounts are false and the other accounts are true. It is not unusual to find businessmen keeping two ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... come forward to testify that the secret books of account did not contain any entry relating to the business dealings of Kallupalam Auto Stores which stands registered in the name of Marykutty and which also is housed in the same building in which Kallupalam Lad's Jewellery Mart is housed. It is true that there are certain entries in the secret books of account which tally in certain respects with the entries in the books of account intended for official purposes which were produced by the respondents in response to the demand made by the Inspecting Assistant Commissioner which raises a strong suspicion against the respondents but that circumstance alone is not sufficient to warrant their conviction for the aforesaid offences. It is now wel ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e handwriting of the person by whom the secret books of account were supposed to have been written, (v) by having the comparison done in court of the secret books of account with some admitted writing as provided in section 73 of the Evidence Act, (vi) by proof of an admission made by any one of the respondents that the secret books of account related to the business transactions carried on by their firm or that any one of them had written the same, (vii) by adducing other unimpeachable circumstantial evidence. No attempt or step seems to have been made or taken in that behalf by the prosecution. The connection of the respondents with the entries in the secret books of account could also have been established by producing some of the cu ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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