9911796707
TMI Blog1998 (10) TMI 47X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... course of assessment proceedings, sought the assessee's explanation regarding the source of investment. The assessee could not give satisfactory explanation. The Assessing Officer, after charging income-tax on Rs. 40,000 as unexplained income of the assessee, proceeded to impose penalty also for the concealment of income. Penalty of Rs. 15,000 was imposed under section 271(l)(c) of the Act. The assessee filed an appeal against the assessment order, challenging the addition of Rs. 40,000 to his income. The Appellate Assistant Commissioner reduced the addition to Rs. 25,000. The Income-tax Appellate Tribunal affirmed the order of the Appellate Assistant Commissioner. The learned Chief Judicial Magistrate, Kurukshetra, recorded the stateme ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... (1) of section 273A and also subsection (1A) of section 279 of the Act : "273A. Power to reduce or waive penalty, etc., in certain cases.-(1) Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act, the Commissioner may, in his discretion, whether on his own motion or otherwise,- (i) reduce or waive the amount of penalty imposed or imposable on a person under clause (i) of sub-section (1) of section 271 for failure, without reasonable cause, to furnish the return of total income which he was required to furnish under sub-section (1) of section 139 ; or (ii) reduce or waive the amount of penalty imposed or imposable on a person under clause (iii) of sub-section (1) of section 271 ; or (iii) reduce or waive the amount of interest paid or paya ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... sure of his income or of the particulars relating thereto in any case where the excess of income assessed over the income returned is of such a nature as not to attract the provisions of clause (c) of sub-section (1) of section 271. 279. (1A) Prosecution to be at instance of Commissioner.-. . . . (1A) A person shall not be proceeded against for an offence under section 276C or section 277 in relation to the assessment for an assessment year in respect of which the penalty imposed or imposable on him under clause (iii) of sub-section (1) of section 271 has been reduced or waived by an order under section 273A. ..." On a perusal of the aforesaid provisions, it is apparent that sub-section (1A) of section 279 comes into play where penalt ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... by the Assessing Officer. The assessee had, on the other hand, filed an appeal which was heard by the Appellate Assistant Commissioner and the order was passed under section 250 of the Act. In this view of the matter, sub-section (1A) of section 279 is not attracted at all inasmuch as it was not a case of reduction or waiver of the amount of penalty by the Commissioner in exercise of his power under section 273A of the Act. A similar matter was once examined by the Kerala High Court in Friends Union Oil Mills v. ITO [1977] 106 ITR 571. There also, penalty was reduced by the Appellate Tribunal and not by the Commissioner under section 271(4A) of the Act. It was, therefore, held that the benefit conferred by section 279(1A) was not availabl ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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