High Court Of Calcutta
DIPAK KUMAR SEN, C. K. BANERJEE
KATIHAR JUTE MILLS (P.) LTD. - Appellant
Versus
COMMISSIONER OF INCOME-TAX (CENTRAL A) - Respondent
Income-Tax Reference 176 Of 1970
Decided On : 11/29/1977
INCOME TAX - Assessment - Fresh assessment - Scope - AAC set aside assessment with direction to ITO to go through contract papers again and do assessment afresh - ITO had no power to add to or allow any other item of income or expenditure - AAC was precluded from entertaining plea based on latest decision of Supreme Court in subsequent appeal.
Fact of the Case:
The assessee, a jute mill, filed a revised return claiming that the sum of Rs. 5,22,450 representing the sale proceeds of loom hours was not taxable, following a Supreme Court judgment holding that such proceeds were of a capital nature. The ITO rejected the claim, holding that he had no power to add to or allow any other item of income or expenditure, as per the AAC's direction to confine the enquiry to speculation loss only. The AAC held that the sum was a capital receipt not liable to tax. On appeal, the Tribunal held that the ITO had no jurisdiction to entertain a plea based on the Supreme Court judgment, as the AAC's order precluded him from doing so.
Finding of the Court:
The Tribunal was right in holding that the ITO had no jurisdiction to entertain a plea based on the latest decision of the Supreme Court in the subsequent appeal, as the AAC's order precluded him from doing so.
Issues: Whether, on the facts and circumstances of the case, the Tribunal was right in holding that in case of an appeal from an assessment framed after being set aside with the direction by the Appellate Assistant Commissioner, the Appellate Assistant Commissioner was precluded from entertaining a plea based on the latest decision of the Supreme Court in the subsequent appeal?
Ratio Decidendi: The AAC's order setting aside the assessment was only partial and to the extent as to the question of treatment of a loss in speculative transaction. The order, read as a whole, did not indicate that the whole assessment was set aside and everything kept at large, allowing the ITO to make a fresh assessment on all aspects and the assessee to make all claims and arguments. Therefore, the ITO and AAC were bound by the AAC's direction and could not entertain a plea based on the Supreme Court judgment.
Final Decision: The question is answered in the affirmative and in favor of the revenue.
( 1 ) THIS reference under Section 66 (1) of the Indian I. T. Act, 1922 (hereinafter referred to as "the Act") is at the instance of the assessee, Katihar Jute Mills (P.) Ltd. , Howrah. The relevant assessment year is 1955-56 for which the relevant accounting year is the calandar year 1954. The facts found by and/or admitted before the Tribunal areas follows : the assessee is a limited company owning a jute mill. The original assessment under Section 23 (3) of the Act was made on the 27th January, 1960. In the said assessment a sum of Rs. 5,22,450 was brought to tax representing the price of loom hours.
( 2 ) THE assessee preferred an appeal before the AAC with regard to two points, namely, (1) treatment of the loss in speculative transactions, and (2) certain disallowances out of expenses. The AAC disposed of the appeal in the following terms :" Before the Income-tax Officer the contract papers were not produced. These are now produced. I have examined the account books also. I find that these are genuine business transactions and losses. However, since the Income-tax Officer has not examined the vouchers and the contract papers, I set aside the assessment with a direction to the Income-tax Officer to make the assessment again after going through the contract papers and other vouchers. The next contention in the appeal regarding certain disallowances was not pressed. There is no merit in this contention and the claim is rejected. In the result, the assessment is set aside with a direction to the Income-tax Officer to go through the contract papers again and do the assessment afresh. "
( 3 ) THUS the assessment went back to the ITO to be made afresh, which was not made by the ITO till 27th September, 1965. It appears, that in the meantime on the 25th April, 1965, the Supreme Court delivered its judgment in CIT v. Maheshwari Devi Jute Mills Ltd. [1965] 57 ITR 36 holding that the proceeds from sale of loom hours were of a capital nature, not assessable as income. The assessee, therefore, filed a revised return on 7th September, 1965, claiming that the sum of Rs. 5,22,450 representing the sale proceeds of loom hours was not taxable. The ITO was of the view that this claim of the assessee could not be considered at that stage because in the original assessment made on the 27th January, 1960, the said sum of Rs. 5,22,450 was included in the income of the assessee and the assessee did not prefer any appeal against this issue before the AAC. The ITO was also of the view that in view of the specific direction of the AAC to confine the enquiry to speculation loss only, he had no power at all to add to or allow any other item of income or expenditure. The ITO, accordingly, rejected the assessee's request for excluding the sum of Rs. 5,22,450 and passed a fresh assessment order dated 27th September, 1965.
( 4 ) THE assessee being aggrieved, preferred an appeal before the AAC and urged that once the assessment was set aside, the whole assessment was to be made afresh and that the correct income had to be computed in accordance with the law. It was also urged that the assessee was entitled to furnish a revised return claiming certain receipts as not taxable, if in law they were so. The AAC found in favour of the assessee and held that the sum of Rs. 5,22,450 was a capital receipt not liable to tax. The AAC held that the receipt of Rs. 5,22,450 arising out of sale of loom hours was not taxable.
( 5 ) THE revenue being aggrieved by the order of the AAC appealed before the Tribunal. The Tribunal held that having regard to the terms of Section 31 (3) (b) of the Act and having regard to the language of the order passed by the AAC, the ITO had jurisdiction only to look into the point that had been before the AAC relating to the speculative losses and that the ITO had no power to travel outside the scope of the remand order. There was no dispute about the sum of Rs. 5,22,450 before tbe ITO or before the AAC and it was not op
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