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TMI Blog1988 (1) TMI 10X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ultural income in column No. 12 of the return of income filed before the Income-tax Officer and as such he made a false statement in the verification of return and also delivered the enclosed false statement knowing that the verification in the return and the statement enclosed thereto are false. The assessee challenged the prosecution on various grounds including that the sanction to prosecute him is not valid, that the non-disclosure of agricultural income on his part is not with the intention of evading tax and that the prosecution has failed to establish mens rea. Both the courts below repelled the above contentions and convicted him holding that the necessary mens rea is established in this case from the facts and circumstances of t ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... "Whether the non-disclosure of agricultural income by the petitioner-assessee was with an ulterior motive ?" The admitted facts are that the petitioner filed his return for the accounting year 1980-81 (assessment year 1981-82) on August 31, 1981, declaring taxable income of Rs. 11,845. He, however, filed a revised return of income on February 15, 1984, disclosing his agricultural income as Rs. 48,650. The Income-tax Officer came to the conclusion that the agricultural income of the assessee could be only Rs. 12,000 but not Rs. 48,650 as claimed by him. Consequently, he added the balance of Rs. 36,650 as income from undisclosed sources and assessed the income of the assessee at Rs. 61,700. It is on that basis that the prosecution conten ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... tural income, that the writing in column No. 12 of exhibit P-2 is in his hand, that during the course of hearing he wrote "nil" and struck it off and noted "no income shown", that in exhibit P-2 a number of columns were left blank, that he has not made any endorsement therein, that during the hearing the accused filed exhibit P-12 revised return showing agricultural income and that after conducting an elaborate enquiry with regard to the quantum of agricultural income, he reduced the quantum of agricultural income. P.W.-1 further stated in the cross-examination that the assessee, the revision petitioner, preferred an appeal against the order of assessment which is pending. Learned standing counsel for the Income-tax Department, however, ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ceedings when called for by the Income-tax Officer cannot be correct. Since exhibit P-3 is not a pro forma statement enclosed by the Income-tax Officer to exhibit P-13 notice, the contention of the petitioner that he has voluntarily filed exhibit P-3 statement can be accepted. If really he had dishonest intention, he would not have filed exhibit P-3 statement and produced exhibit P-5 account book. P.W.-1, during the course of his cross-examination, stated that the petitioner has inflated his agricultural income. But that is not the gravamen of the charge against the petitioner. Learned standing counsel for the Income-tax Department argued that where an assessee deliberately conceals a part of his income, he would be liable for prosecu ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... As a result of allowing the appeals filed by the firms of which the petitioner is a partner, the income of the petitioner as originally shown is accepted by the Department. Taking into consideration the entire facts and circumstances of the case, I hold that the petitioner did not have the requisite mens rea so as to attract the penal consequences of his act. It can be seen from the evidence of P.W.-I that it is from the net wealth statement filed by the assessee himself that he had detected the non-disclosure of agricultural income. In view of the above facts and circumstances of the case, I find that the non-disclosure of agricultural income by the petitioner-assessee is not with any ulterior motive. The convictions and sentences imp ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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