The jurisdiction of the Income-tax Officer to rectify any mistake in any assessment order or refund order must be confined to a mistake which is apparent from the record.

( 1 ) VENESTA Foils Ltd. , a company incorporated in the U. K. , manufactures and markets aluminium foils and allied products extensively in the U. K. and in other countries throughout the world. On the 17th March, 1939, another company called the Foil Centre Ltd. was incorporated under the English Companies Act with an authorised capital of 100 divided into 100 shares of 1 each of which only two shares were issued as fully paid-up and held by Venesta Foils Lfd. On the 20th April, 1961, at an extraordinary general meeting of Foil Centre, resolutions were passed changing the name of that company to India Foils Ltd. and also increasing the authorised capital by a further sum of 900 devided into 900 shares of 1 each. By an agreement dated the 30th November, 1961, Venesta agreed to transfer all its immovable properties, factories, plants, machinery and other movable and immovable assets in India to the petitioner, India Foils Ltd. , the present petitioner, at the value shown in the books of Venesta while the petitioner undertook to meet all the liabilities of Venesta incurred on account of its Indian business including a loan of 204,328 due by Venesta to Messrs. Reynolds T. I. Aluminium Ltd. It was further agreed that after setting off the liabilities from the aforesaid book value of the assets the residue of the consideration for the said sale would be paid and satisfied by the issue to Venesta or its nominees of 998 shares of 1 each credited as fully paid in the petitioner-company. As a result Venesta held all the 1,000 shares constituting the authorised capital of the petitioner-company and the petitioner-company became a hundred per cent. subsidiary of Venesta. The petitioner closed its accounts for the first time on the 30th November, 1961, and filed its return for the assessment year 1962-63 (the accounting period being from 1st January, 1961, to 30th November, 1961) and in the said return claimed depreciation on the basis of the written down value of the fixed assets as determined in the previous assessment of Venesta. Subsequently, by a letter dated the 3rd December, 1962, Messrs. Price Waterhouse Peat and Co. , the petitioner's accountants, furnished an amended statement of depreciation and development rebate on the basis of the actual cost of the fixed assets to the assessee, viz. , the value of these assets as shown in the books of Venesta on the date of the sale. For the assessment year 1962-63, the Income-tax Officer making the assessment accepted the petitioner's contention after considering the terms of the aforesaid agreement dated 30th November, 1961, and determined the depreciation as per the assessee's computation at Rs. 10,96,630. For the subsequent assessment years 1963-64,1964-65 and 1965-66 different Income-tax Officers also accepted the assessee's contention as to the actual cost of these fixed assets in determining the depreciation allowance in each of these years. By a notice purported to be under Sections 154/155 of the Income-tax Act, 1961, dated the 11th March, 1969, the respondent-Income-tax Officer notified the petitioner that he intended to rectify a mistake apparent from the records of the assessment for the year 1962-63 and as such rectification would have the effect of enhancing the assessment the petitioner was asked to appear either in person or by an authorised representative if he wanted to be heard thereon. In the said notice the nature of the mistake proposed to be rectified was stated to be a "mistake in allowing depreciation on certain assets". The reason for the respondent-Income-tax Officer's issuing the notice under Section 154 is disclosed in paragraph 9 of the affidavit-in-opposition affirmed by the respondent-Income-tax Officer, in showing cause to the rule issued in this case which is to the following effect:"i say that the assets acquired by the petitioner are far in excess of the consideration paid as the book value of the assets transferred is much more than the c