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TMI Blog1970 (6) TMI 11X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... d and the said returns were duly filed. Notices under section 24(4) of the Bengal Agricultural Income-tax Act (hereinafter referred to as " the Act ") for these various years were served on the said estate calling upon it to produce, inter alia, its books of accounts and other records and the certified copy of the assessment order for the corresponding year under the Indian Income-tax Act. The said notice also informed the assessee that failure to comply with any of the terms of the notice would render him liable to prosecution under section 53(1) of the Act and to summary assessment under section 25(5). It is alleged in the petition that the said Maidhandas Agarwalla contended before the Agricultural Income-tax Officer, being the respondent No. 1 herein, that as the assessments under the Central Income-tax Act for any of the aforesaid assessment years had not been completed, it was not possible to furnish certified copies of the said assessment orders. It is further alleged in the petition that in spite thereof the respondent No. 1 proposed to proceed with the assessment of the Bagdogra Tea Estate to agricultural income-tax for the aforesaid years ex parte if there was failure to ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... allocated as to 60 per cent. as agricultural income and 40 per cent. as the income chargeable under the Indian Income-tax Act. Unless such an assessment has been made it is not possible to compute the agricultural income of an assessee growing and manufacture tea and no assessment to agricultural income-tax can be made until and unless the assessment for the corresponding year has been completed under the Indian Income-tax Act. In the affidavit-in-opposition it is not denied that the notice under section 24(4) did require the petitioner and/or his predecessor-in-interest to produce certified copies of the assessment orders under the Indian Income-tax Act for the relevant years as such certified copies were required under the provisions of the Act for completing the assessment to agricultural income-tax. It is further pointed out that under the provisions of the Act the assessment to agricultural income-tax for the year 1963-64 would be barred on the 31st March, 1970 and the respondent No. 1 was anxious to complete the assessment before such assessment became barred. It is further stated that the assessment to agricultural income-tax of the Bagdogra Tea Estate for the year 1963-64 ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... before I discuss the legal points involved in this application. Though a complaint is made in the petition that in spite of representations on behalf of the petitioner and/or his predecessor-in-interest that it was not possible to produce a certified copy of the assessment order under the Indian Income-tax Act as no assessment under that Act had been completed or had been made. Mr. Sen Gupta points out that though the impugned notice was issued on the 15th December, 1969, and admittedly received by the petitioner on the 17th December, 1969, no letter or application from the petitioner to the respondent No. 1 has been disclosed or annexed to the petition recording the fact that no such assessment had taken place and that it was not possible for the petitioner to produce the certified copy of the relevant assessment order. On the other hand, an application dated the 23rd December, 1969, from the tea estate to respondent No. 1 has been annexed to the petition showing that the petitioner was asking for time to produce its books of account as such books had been seized by the Income-tax Officer, Siliguri, and that the accountant of the estate was seriously ill. In this petition no time ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Act and thereafter it is apportioned, as to the agricultural income and the business income, and only that part which is apportioned as agricultural income is to be taken for the purposes of assessment to agricultural income-tax under the Act. Sub-section (3) of that section provides that for the purpose of assessment under that section or any rule made thereunder a certified copy of the order of an assessment under the Indian Income-tax Act or a certified copy of an order of any appellate or revising authority or of the High Court or of the Supreme Court altering or amending such order of assessment under the provisions of that Act shall be conclusive evidence of the contents of such order. Section 24 deals with the notices requiring the assessee either to file returns or to produce books and documents in support of such returns. Under sub-section (4) of that section the Agricultural Income-tax Officer may serve on any person who has made a return a notice requiring him on a date to be therein specified to produce or cause to be produced such accounts or documents as the Agricultural Income-tax Officer may require, provided that the Agricultural Income-tax Officer may on reasonabl ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ng the Agricultural Income-tax Officer to disregard the computation of the tea income made by the income-tax authorities acting under the Central Income-tax Acts. The Agricultural Income-tax Officer in making an assessment of agricultural income is bound to accept the computation of the tea income already made by the Central income-tax authorities and to assess only sixty per cent. of the income so computed less allowable deductions as agricultural income taxable under the Kerala Act." After considering the provisions, inter alia, of sections 8(2), 24(1) proviso, 24(2) proviso 23(4) and 25(5) of the Bengal Agricultural Income-tax Act, 1944, and rules 7 and 8 made thereunder, the Supreme Court declined to express any opinion on the construction of these Acts and Rules, and merely contented itself by saying that the Kerala Agricultural Income-tax Act did not confer upon the Agricultural Income-tax Officer power to disregard the assessment on the tea income already made by the Central income-tax authorities. The Supreme Court, however, was not unaware of the difficulties which might arise in making an assessment of agricultural income on the basis of the assessment of the tea income ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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