9911796707
TMI Blog2001 (8) TMI 96X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... fter the search, an assessment was made within the period allowed by law, on the 30th of September, 1996. The assessment so made was challenged before the Tribunal. The Tribunal upheld some of the additions made, and with regard to some others it set aside the additions that had been made as before making such additions the report which the Assessing Officer had relied upon had not been furnished to the appellant. Counsel for the appellant submitted that the Tribunal has erred firstly in the manner in which it has considered section 158BG of the Income-tax Act by holding that the Commissioner, before making an order approving the order of assessment made by the Assessing Officer in exercise of his powers under section 158BG(a), need not ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... efinition and sought to relate that term to the specification of ten assessment years made in the earlier part of the definition. It is necessary to set out the definition of "block period" given in the statute. "158B. In this Chapter, unless the context otherwise requires, (a) 'block period' means the previous years relevant to ten assessment years preceding the previous year in which the search was conducted under section 132 or any requisition was made under section 132A, and includes, in the previous year in which such search was conducted or requisition made, the period up to the date of the commencement of such search or, as the case may be, the date of such requisition." The opening part of this definition specifies that " ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... "previous years relevant to the ten assessment years" referred to in the opening part of the definition. The words "and includes", which occur in the later part of the definition are words which can only be regarded as relevant to the term "block period" as the inclusion of the additional period to which reference is made after the words "and includes" can only be for the purpose of regarding that period also as forming part of the block period. The Tribunal was, therefore, right in holding that the computation of the block period had been made properly as including within it the ten previous years relevant to the ten assessment years preceding the date of search plus the period up to the date of the search in the previous year in which ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... which fetters the discretion of the appellate forum. There can be no dispute and there is none regarding the extent of the power of the appellate authority that it has the power not only to uphold or set aside the assessment order but also has the power to modify or remit. The apex court in more than one decision, under other provisions of the Income-tax Act, including those in Chapter XX-C, has held that the limitation prescribed for making the initial order is for the making of that order alone and is not in the nature of limiting the power of the higher forum, which is empowered to examine the correctness of the initial order, and preventing it from exercising its powers. ( Director of Inspection of I. T. v. Pooran Mall and Sons [197 ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ature and source thereof or the explanation offered by him is not, in the opinion of the Assessing Officer, satisfactory, the sum so credited may be charged to income-tax as the income of the assessee of that previous year." The Tribunal has found that the explanation offered by the assessee before the Assessing Officer was not a satisfactory explanation in respect of some items and, with respect to certain others no explanation at all was offered. Section 68, in the context of the facts of this case, clearly enabled the Assessing Officer to treat such unexplained cash credits as the income of the assessee. That is how it has been treated and the Tribunal was not in error in accepting such treatment given to such cash credits by the Asse ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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