9911796707
TMI Blog1999 (3) TMI 47X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... s from proceeding in furtherance of the said notice. The petitioner assessed as an individual for the purpose of income-tax and wealth-tax, is also a partner in a partnership firm A. G. Wagle. She owns various properties including agricultural land at Sanco Alois (Goa), bearing Matriz Nos. 510 and 512. She had shown in her returns for the assessment year 1984-85 that she has received a sum of Rs. 1,98,625 from Zuari Agro Chemicals Ltd., in consideration of water drawn by them from the agricultural land of the petitioner. A note explaining the exemption of this amount from tax liability was appended to both statements of wealth and income submitted by her. The note reads : "7. The assessee during the year received a sum of Rs. 1,98,625 (ru ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... come-tax Department whether the said notices have been issued under section 147(a) or under section 147(b) of the Income-tax Act. She also asked for the copy of the reasons recorded before issuing notices under section 148 of the Income-tax Act. On May 23, 1991, the petitioner was asked to appear before the Income-tax Officer, Ward-I, Panaji, Goa. The petitioner, therefore, filed this writ petition, challenging the validity of the notice and for quashing the same. Shri V. K. Bodke, learned counsel for the petitioner, submitted that since the fact of receipt of a particular income and the nature of the income was disclosed fully in the income-tax and wealth-tax returns and the claim of the petitioner that the said income was not taxable, ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... d assessment for any assessment year, he may, subject to the provisions of sections 148 and 153, assess or reassess such income or recompute the loss or the depreciation allowance, as the case may be, for the assessment year concerned (hereafter in sections 148 and 153 referred to as the relevant assessment year)." Therefore, section 147 was permitting the reopening of the assessee's case and assess or reassess the income escaped, only if (a) the Assessing Officer has reason to believe that there is an omission on the part of the assessee to make a return under section 139 for any assessment year to the Assessing Officer or to disclose fully and trully all material facts necessary; (b) even if there is no such failure on the part of the ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e Assessing Officer, on March 26, 1991, recorded an opinion noting that : "The assessee has claimed that receipts are of capital nature. I am of the opinion that these receipts are of revenue nature. I, therefore, have reasons to believe that the income is chargeable to tax is underassessed. Notice under section 148 is to be issued to reopen the assessment." and, thereafter, issued notice under section 148. The first contention raised by the petitioner's counsel that the reasons should have been communicated to the assessee has no foundation in the statutory requirement. Requirement of recording reasons may be for different purposes. Requirement of recording reasons in a speaking and reasoned order is different from the requirement of r ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e assessee or where income had not been assessed owing to inadvertence or oversight or other lacuna attributable to the assessing authorities. Even in a case where a return had been submitted, if the Income-tax Officer had erroneously failed to tax a part of the assessable income, it was a case where that part of the income had escaped assessment within the meaning of that provision. In Calcutta Discount Co. Ltd. v. ITO [1961] 41 ITR 191 (SC) five judges of the Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court per majority, held that it was the duty of the assessee-company to disclose all the facts which had a bearing on the question, but the intention of the assessee behind a particular transaction was a matter of inference. The law did not requir ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e had appended a note clarifying that the income from the interest is not shown, but share in the income from the firm has been shown, The assessee in his returns had appended a note to the effect that the interest earned by his wife from the firm was not shown in view of the decision of the Tribunal for an earlier year. The Income-tax Officer, while training the the assessments, included the share income which the wife had received from the firm in the total income of the assessee. The Income-tax Officer did not, however, include the interest received by the wife from the firm in the total income of the assessee. The assessment was completed and thereafter, it was sought to be reopened under section 148 read with section 147 of the Income- ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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