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TMI Blog1980 (1) TMI 81X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... I.T. returns of the firm were exhibited through P.Ws. 22 and 23 who were the officers of the said department. After P.W. 23 was partly examined and some of those documents were exhibited, a petition was filed on behalf of the accused persons questioning the admissibility of the records of the I.T. Department as evidence. As such an objection was not taken when the witness was summoned and his evidence commenced, the learned Magistrate decided to take up the petition for hearing after the evidence of the witness was concluded. The petition was subsequently heard and by his order dated August 29, 1979, the learned Magistrate accepted the contention of the accused persons and held that the documents of the I.T. Dept. so far as they related to ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... entitled to require any public servant to produce before it any such return, accounts, documents or record or any part of any such record, or to give evidence before it in respect thereof. (2) If a public servant discloses any particulars contained in any such statement, return, accounts, documents, evidence, affidavit, deposition or record, he shall be punishable with imprisonment which may extend to six months, and shall also be liable to fine. " Section 137 of the 1961 Act, which Act repealed the 1922 Act, was substantially in identical terms as s. 54 of the 1922 Act. By s. 32 of the Finance Act, 1964, s. 137 of the Act of 1961 was omitted. From the above provisions, it is evident that under s. 54 of the 1922 Act and s. 137 of t ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... nds of documents and thereby cast upon them an obligation within the meaning of s. 6(c) of the General Clauses Act, 1897. A corresponding privilege also existed in favour of the persons who filed or produced the documents before the income-tax authorities. It has then to be determined whether the repeal of s. 137 revealed a " different intention " within the meaning of s. 6 of the General Clauses Act, so as to make cl. (c) thereof inapplicable. If it was a case of simple repeal there would not have been any scope for determining the contrary intention of the legislature. But then the modification of s. 138 of the Act, after repeal of s. 137, casts a duty upon the court to look into the contents of the said section for the purpose of determi ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... any other relevant factors, by order notified in the Official Gazette, direct that no information or document shall be furnished or produced by a public servant in respect of such matters relating to such class of assessees or except to such authorities as may be specified in the order. " By Finance (No. 2) Act, 1967, sub-s. (1) of s. 138 was substituted by the following sub-section : " 138. Disclosure of information respecting assessees.--(1)(a) The Board or any other income-tax authority specified by it by a general or special order in this behalf may furnish or cause to be furnished to-- (i) any officer, authority or body performing any functions under any law relating to the imposition of any tax, duty or cess, or to dealings i ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ment. Though the rigidity regarding disclosure of the information furnished to the income-tax authorities has been relaxed to some extent after the repeal of s. 137, yet the legislature has put a check upon such disclosure by vesting the Commissioner with the necessary powers not to disclose any document. It cannot, therefore, be said that the intention of the legislature was to withdraw or destroy the privilege altogether which accrued to a person before April 1, 1964. That necessarily means that the subsequent legislation does not reveal a different intention. I am, therefore, of the opinion that in view of s. 6(c) of the General Clauses Act, all documents filed or produced before the income-tax authorities in assessment proceedings un ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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