9911796707
TMI Blog1991 (5) TMI 21X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... to the State Government of Gujarat for deployment of Special Reserve Police personnel at the petitioner's factory at Gujarat for the period September 28, 1980, to December 10, 1980. It is stated that, on scrutiny, it was found that no S.R.P. personnel had in fact been deployed at the assessee's factory during that period. It is further stated that the liability was fictitious and the account showing such liability was false. Finally, it is stated that there was, therefore, a wilful attempt to evade tax imposable under the Act. The said complaint concludes with this prayer : "In the circumstances, it is prayed that the learned court maybe pleased to take cognizance of the offences under sections 276C and 277 of the Income-tax Act against ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... the period August 27, 1980 to September 28, 1980, which had been paid by the petitioner in the next year. The petitioner provided for the liability to pay the State Government for the balance period in its accounts. The State Government having delayed in raising the bill for the balance period, the petitioners wrote back the amount provided for such balance period in the assessment year 1983-84 and paid tax on the amount. The following cases have been cited as authorities for the proposition that, unless the filing of an inaccurate return is accompanied by a guilty mind, section 276C, 277 or 278B cannot be invoked: (a) Cement Marketing Co. of India Ltd. v. Asst. CST reported in [1980] 124 ITR 15 (SC); (b) Burmah-Shell Oil Storage and Dist ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Magistrate for enquiry and dismissal of the complaint. (3) The complaint was dated October 29, 1988. The petitioners were guilty of laches. There was no explanation for such delay. I am of the view that the contentions of the respondents must be upheld. With regard to the first contention of the petitioner, I cannot hold that the complaint was without jurisdiction. It is true that, in the case of Swapan Kumar Guha [1983] 53 Comp Cas 114, 153 ; AIR 1982 SC 949, 972, the Supreme Court has stated : " Whether an offence has been disclosed or not must necessarily depend on the facts and circumstances of each particular case. In considering whether an offence into which an investigation is made or to be made, is disclosed or not, the cour ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... doubt that, in the mercantile system of accounting, a liability incurred may be debited as an expenditure before it is actually disbursed but, in this case, the income-tax authorities have disputed the incurring of the liability itself or so it appears from the complaint. In other words, the complaint proceeds on the basis that no SRP personnel having been deployed at the petitioner's factory during the period September 28, 1980, to December 10, 1980, no expenditure could be said to have been incurred for such a liability and as such the provision for such expenditure was false. The third ground of the petitioners for arguing that the complaint was without jurisdiction cannot be accepted in view of the statutory presumption of a guilty mi ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e court cannot be utilised for any oblique purpose and where in the opinion of the court chances of an ultimate conviction are bleak and, therefore, no useful purpose is likely to be served by allowing a criminal prosecution to continue, the court may while taking into consideration the special facts of a case also quash the proceeding even though it may be at a preliminary stage. " The Supreme Court had merely restated the well-known proposition, viz., the court, in exercise of its power under article 226, will interfere to quash a criminal proceeding when " the allegations made in the First Information Report or the complaint, even if they are taken at their face value and accepted in their entirety, do not prima facie constitute any ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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