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TMI Blog1954 (1) TMI 1X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e 226 of the Constitution at the present stage, and on this ground alone, we would refuse to interfere with the orders made by the High Court. Appeal dismissed. - CIVIL APPEALS Nos. 118 to 121 of 1952 - - - Dated:- 22-1-1954 - Judge(s) : B. K. MUKHERJEA., GHULAM HASAN., MEHR CHAND MAHAJAN., S. R. DAS., VIVIAN BOSE JUDGMENT The judgment of the Court was delivered by MUKHERJEA. J.--These four consolidated appeals, which have come before us, on a certificate granted by the High Court of Punjab under Article 133(1)(c) of the Constitution, are directed against one common judgment of a Division Bench of that Court dated the 10th August, 195o, by which the learned judges dismissed four analogous petitions, presented on behalf of the different appellants, claiming reliefs under Articles 226 and 227 of the Constitution, in respect of certain income-tax investigation proceedings commenced against them under Act XXX of 1947. It appears that a partnership firm carrying on business under the name and style of K. S. Rashid Son was started on the 5th of May, 1934, the partners being three in number to wit K. S. Rashid Ahmed, Saeed Ahmed, his son, and Mrs. Zafar Muhammed, his m ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... lf of the appellants, before the High Court of Punjab, and the prayers made therein were of a three-fold character. It was prayed in the first place that a writ of prohibition might be issued to the Commission and the authorised official directing them not to proceed with the investigation of cases referred to the Commission under Section 5 of Act XXX of 1947. The second prayer was for a writ in the nature of certiorari for quashing the proceedings already commenced. The third and the alternative claim was that the proceedings before the Commission might be revised under Article 227 of the Constitution and suitable orders passed as the justice of the case would require. Upon these petitions, rules were issued on the 25th of July, 1950, after a report from the Investigation Commission had been called for. On behalf of the respondents, who resisted these petitions, certain preliminary points were raised in bar of the petitioners' claim. It was contended in the first place that the petitioners being assessees belonging to U.P., their assessments were to be made by the Income-tax Commissioner of that State and the mere fact that the location of the Investigation Commission was in Delhi ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ly to " British subjects " as defined in the Charter itself. It was held that the Supreme Court of Madras had no jurisdiction under the Charter which created it to correct or control a country court of the East India Company deciding a dispute between Indian inhabitants of the Ganjam district about the rent payable for land in that district ; and no such power was given by any subsequent legislation to its successor, the High Court. A contention seems to have been raised on behalf of the appellants that the jurisdiction to issue writs could be founded on the fact that the office of the Board of Revenue, which was the appellate authority in the matter of settlement of rents, was located within the town of Madras and the order complained of was made in that town and reliance was placed in this connection upon the case of Nundo Lal Bose v. The Calcutta Corporation, where a certiorari was issued by the Calcutta High Court to quash an assessment made by the Commissioners of the town of Calcutta on a certain dwelling house. This contention was repelled by the Judicial Committee with the following observations :-- " The question is whether the principle of that case can be applied in t ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ng writs under Article 226 of the Constitution. The whole law on this subject has been discussed and elucidated by this Court in its recent pronouncement in Election Commission v. Venkata Rao where the observations of the Judicial Committee in the Parlakimedi case, upon which reliance has been placed by the Punjab High Court, have been fully explained. It is to be noted first of all, that prior to the commencement of the Constitution the powers of issuing prerogative writs could be exercised in India only by the High Courts of Calcutta, Madras and Bombay and that also within very rigid and defined limits. The writs could be issued only to the extent that the power in that respect was not taken away by the Codes of Civil and Criminal Procedure and they could be directed only to persons and authorities within the original civil jurisdiction of these High Courts. The Constitution introduced a fundamental change of law in this respect. As has been explained by this Court in the case referred to above, while Article 225 of the Constitution preserves to the existing High Courts the powers and jurisdictions which they had previously, Article 226 confers, on all the High Courts, new and ve ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e appellate authority alone in the town of Madras was not a sufficient basis for the exercise of jurisdiction whereas both the subject-matter, viz., the settlement of rent for lands in Ganjam, and the Revenue Officer authorised to make the settlement at first instance were outside the local limits of the jurisdiction of the High Court. If the Court in Madras were recognised as having jurisdiction to issue the writ of certiorari to the appellate authority in Madras, it would practically be recognising the Court's jurisdiction over the Revenue Officer in Ganjam and the settlement of rents for lands there, which their Lordships held it never had. That was the 'substance' of the matter they were looking at." In our opinion, therefore, the first contention raised by Dr. Tek Chand must be accepted as sound and the view taken by the Punjab High Court on the question of jurisdiction cannot be sustained. So far as the second point is concerned, the High Court relies upon the ordinary rule of construction that where the legislature has passed a new statute giving a new remedy, that remedy is the only one which could be pursued. It is said that the Taxation on Income (Investigation Commiss ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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