S. ANANDA REDDY, J.

( 1 ) THIS writ petition is filed praying for the issue of Writ of Mandamus declaring that the Communication No. CIT. AP. II/kvss/ 190/98-99, dated 17-12-1999 issued by the 1st respondent as illegal, arbitrary and consequential declaration that the payment dated 27-03-1999 made by the petitioner is valid and to direct the respondents to issue to the petitioner a certificate as required under Kar Vivad Samadhan Scheme, 1998.

( 2 ) THE petitioner is an individual, who was in arrears of tax to the Income Tax department for the assessment years 1993-94 and 1994-95. While so, in the year 1998 the Government of India, Ministry of finance declared a scheme called "kar vivad Samadhan Scheme, 1998 (hereinafter referred to as the KVS Scheme or the scheme ) with an object of reducing litigation, collecting revenues by the government at an early date and for de-clogging the legal system by reducing the number of appeals, writ petitions, revisions etc. , pending as on that date. As per the scheme all the assessees, who are in due of payment of tax, interest, penalty etc. , as on 31-03-1998, which is disputed before any authority are entitled to make a declaration during the period of scheme from 1st september 1998 to 31st December 1998 and pay the tax at the declared concessional rate. According to the petitioner, in pursuance of the said Scheme, he filed his declaration before the 1st respondent on 28-12-1998. The said declaration was for the assessment years 1993-94 and 1994-95, showing the tax arrears at Rs. 74,390 and rs. 1,14,598 respectively. A Certificate of intimation in Form 2-A under Section 90 (1) of the Finance (No. 2) Act, 1998 was issued to the petitioner. In terms of the Intimation, the Petitioner was required to pay rs. 27,498 for the assessment year 1993-94 and Rs, 50,462 for the assessment year 1994-95. According to the petitioner the above two payments were made by means of cheque on 27-03-1999 drawn on the rajadhani Bank, Barkathpura in a sum of rs. 77,958 and it was presented along with the challan before the Department, the receipt of which, by the Department, was not in dispute. The petitioner also addressed a letter to the 1st respondent on 22-04-1999 informing him of the payments made by the Petitioner by enclosing copies of the two challans evidencing the payments. But, however, it is stated that the petitioner received a letter dated 8-3-2000 from the 2nd respondent stating that the declarations filed by the petitioner for the assessment years in question were treated as non est and were lodged as the payment was not made in time. By the same letter, the petitioner was also asked to clear off the tax dues for the two assessment years in question. The petitioner thereafter addressed a letter dated 19-07-2000 to the 1st respondent requesting to treat the payments made by the petitioner as payments made in pursuance of the scheme and requested for the issue of the certificate, under KVS Scheme, 1998. The petitioner also further stated that he was informed that the cheque was cleared on 12-4-1999 and as the same was not cleared before the period of 30 days from the date of receipt of the intimation, it was not treated as payment under the Scheme. It is further stated that the Petitioner has also brought to the notice of the 1st Respondent that as per the judgment of the Supreme court in the case of Commissioner of Income tax vs. Ogale Class Works Ltd. 1 as well as the judgment of the Gujarat High Court in kangold (India) Ltd. vs. C. I. T. 2, the date of presentation of the cheque, if honoured, would amounts to payment on that date and therefore the presentation of the cheque on 27-03-1999 should be treated as payment and if so, the petitioner is entitled for the issue of a Certificate under the KVS Scheme 1998. The petitioner s request was not accepted to by the respondents by letter dated 11-08-2000, where it was also intimated that an earlier communication was also sent to the petitioner on 1

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