(Prayer: Writ Petitions filed under Article 226 of the Constitution of India seeking to issue writs of declaration to declare that Section 278E of the Income Tax Act, 1961 is ultra vires, illegal, unreasonable and unconstitutional, repugnant to the Constitution of India.)

The writ petitioners challenge the constitutional validity of Section 278E of the Income Tax Act, 1961 (hereinafter referred to as the 'Act').

2. The petitioners are facing prosecution before the Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (E.O. II), Egmore, Chennai-8 for the offence under Section 276CC of the Act. The case of the petitioners is that, the expression 'wilfully' occurring in Section 278E of the Act indicates the mens rea element. This is the basis for the prosecution. Therefore, the prosecution is bound to prove the existence of mens rea on the part of the accused, beyond reasonable doubt. However, by introduction of Section 278E, which gives rise to a presumption as to the culpable mental state of the accused, the entire basis of accusatorial jurisprudence, as accepted and recognised in India, has been shifted. The petitioners contend that while having to defend a wholly baseless and vexat