A party cannot invoke the writ jurisdiction of the High Court upon receipt of a mere show-cause notice. The party should avail of the alternative remedy of replying to the show-cause notice and submit its explanation to the authority who issued the notice so that the matter is decided at his level.

( 1 ) THIS appeal against the judgment of the learned single judge of this court passed on July 16, 1990, has been filed by Brooke Bond Lipton India Ltd. , an existing public company incorporated under the Companies Act, 1956, and having its registered office at Brooke House, Calcutta.

( 2 ) TEA Estates India Limited was a company in existence prior to the year 1993, and was engaged in the business of growing green tea leaves in its tea gardens and manufacturing black tea and selling the same in the market. The method of accounting of the said company was mercantile and the accounting period of this was the financial year. This company was a regular income-tax assesses under the Income-tax Act, 1961, and was being assessed by the Income-tax Department, Sector-10, Calcutta, for all the relevant assessment years including the assessment year 1993-94. It is claimed that in computing the taxable income, Tea Estates India Limited was entitled to benefits under the provisions of Section 32ab and Section 33ab of the Income-tax Act, apart from other benefits and reliefs allowable thereunder. It is further claimed that in the assessment years 1987-88, 1988-89, 1989-90 and 1990-91, Tea Estates India Limited made deposits in the accounts opened under the Investment Deposit Accounts Scheme (Tea), 1986, under Section 32ab (1) (a) of the Income-tax Act. In the previous years relevant to the assessment years, the said assessee-company had also purchased assets in terms of Sections 32ab and 33ab of the Act. In the said four assessment years, the company claimed deductions under Section 32ab (1) of the Act, which were allowed by the Assessing Officer while making assessments for the relevant assessment years.

( 3 ) CERTAIN other assessments for other accounting periods relevant for other assessment years were also made by the Assessing Officers. For instance, in the accounting period relevant for the assessment year 1993-94, the company made deposits under Section 33ab (1) of the Income-tax Act and as such claimed deductions under the relevant section. This claim was, however, disallowed by the Assessing Officer.

( 4 ) IT is claimed that with effect from January 1, 1993, Tea Estates India Limited merged and amalgamated with Brooke Bond India Limited along with another

company called Doom Dooma Tea Limited. The said scheme of amalgamation was made under Section 391 (2) and Section 394 of the Companies Act, 1956, and it is claimed that this amalgamation was approved and sanctioned by the Madras High Court, vide its order, dated April 27, 1993, as well as by this court vide order dated April 6, 1993. On this said amalgamation, by operation of law, it is further claimed that all the assets and liabilities of Tea Estates India Limited and Doom Dooma Tea Limited stood vested in Brooke Bond India Limited and that the said Tea Estates India Limited went into liquidation. Subsequently, with effect from March 7, 1994, even the aforesaid Brooke Bond India Limited got merged with Lipton India Limited and is now known as Brooke Bond Lipton India Limited, of which Tea Estates India Limited is one of the divisions.

( 5 ) ON May 2, 1996, the Commissioner of Income-tax, West Bengal-II, respondent No. 1, in this appeal issued a notice to Tea Estates India Limited, Brooke House No. 1, Post Office Road, Coonoor, under Section 263 of the Income-tax Act calling upon the said Tea Estates India Limited to explain and submit as to why the said Commissioner of Income-tax may not exercise the powers available to him in terms of Section 263 of the Income-tax Act to direct the Assessing Officer to revise the assessment bringing to tax the amounts of Rs. 8,93,89,258 and Rs. 3,22,91,765 in the light of the details contained in the said notice. It shall be advantageous to reproduce the text of the notice, which reads thus :"i found on perusal of the assessment records that the assessment for the assessment year 1993-94 has been completed in your case on