A mistake apparent from the record under Section 154 of the Income-tax Act, 1961, includes a mistake which is glaring, obvious or a self-evident mistake, and is not confined to clerical or arithmetical mistakes only.

1. This is a reference under Section 256(1) of the Income-tax Act, 1961 (hereinafter referred to as "the Act"), by the Income-tax Appellate Tribunal (Chandigarh Bench).

2. Messrs. Ved Parkash Madan Lal, the assessee, is an excise contractor. While completing the assessment for the assessment years 1960-61 and 1961-62, the Income-tax Officer held that two hotels (Dhabas) attached to the two liquor shops also belonged to the assessee-firm and accordingly included the income from those hotels in the total income of the assessee. The assessment for the year 1960-61 was completed on 8th October, 1963, and for the year 1961-62, on 10th June, 1964. For the assessment year 1962-63 (with which we are concerned in this reference) the Income-tax Officer followed his earlier orders for the assessment years 1960-61 and 1961-62 and included the income from these hotels in the total income of the assessee. It is the common case of the parties that the assessee did not go in appeal to the Appellate Assistant Commissioner of Income-tax against the order of assessment of the Income-tax Officer for the year 1962-63. The assessee preferred an appeal to the Appellate Assistant Commissioner only against the orders of assessment for the years 1960-61 and 1961-62. The main contention of the assessee in the appeal was that one of the hotels belonged to Behari Lal and the other to Om Parkash, and that the income from the hotels could not be included in his income. The Appellate Assistant Commissioner upheld the order of the Income-tax Officer and rejected the appeal. On second appeal, the order of the Appellate Assistant Commissioner was set aside by the Tribunal and the appeal was remanded for fresh disposal after taking into consideration all the facts of the case and allowing the parties fresh opportunity of leading evidence. After remand, the Appellate Assistant Commissioner remanded the case to the Income-tax Officer for further enquiry. On receipt of the remand report, the Appellate Assistant Commissioner found that the two hotels did not belong to the assessee and the income from the two hotels was accordingly excluded from the total income of the assessee.

3. After the decision of the Appellate Assistant Commissioner, the assessee filed an application under Section 154 of the Act before the Income-tax Officer praying for the rectification of his order of assessment for the year 1962-63 and for the exclusion of the income from the two hotels from the total income. The Income-tax Officer rejected the application on the ground that the matter did not fall within the purview of Section 154 of the Act. A copy of the Income-tax Officers order dated 19th October, 1967, forms part of the case as annexure "A". The assessee filed an appeal but the same was rejected by the Appellate Assistant Commissioner vide his order dated 23rd October, 1968 (copy annexure "B"). Still dissatisfied, the assessee filed a further appeal before the Tribunal but did not succeed, as is evident from the order of the Tribunal dated 28th April, 1970 (copy annexure "C"). Thereafter, the assessee filed an application requesting the Tribunal to refer to this court the question of law which arose out of the Tribunals order and finding that the question of law did arise, the Tribunal has referred the following question for the opinion of this court:

"Whether, on the facts and in the circumstances of the case, and in view of the order for assessment year 1962-63 which had become final, it was within the competence of the Income-tax Officer to rectify the assessment order under Section 154 and exclude the income from the two hotels from the total income of the assessee ?"

4. The relevant portion of Section 154 under which power is given to the Income-tax Officer to rectify any mistake, reads as under :

"154. (1) With a view to rectifying any mistake apparent from the record- (a) the Income-tax Officer may amend any order of assessment or of refund or any other order passed by