KOHINOOR INTERNATIONAL PRIVATE LIMITED Vs. S HUSSAIN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) By this petition under Section 482, Cr.P.C., petitioners seek quashing of the proceedings emanating from the complaint filed by the respondent under Section 276-B of the Income-tax Act (for short the Act) on account of their failure to deduct TDS on payments made to the contractors.

(2.) The petitioner No. 1 is the private limited company incorporated under the Companies Act. Petitioners No. 2 to 5 were the Directors and were also incharge of and responsible to the petitioner No. 1 for the conduct of its day-to-day business. In the year 1982, the petitioner No. 1 paid different amounts to the contractors for carrying out the contract of stitching, embroidery and finishing etc. According to the provisions of Section 194-C of the Act, tax @ 2% was deductible at source from the payments made by the petitioner No. 1 to the contractors engaged for carrying out the aforesaid work. The petitioners contravened the provisions of Section 194-C of the Act inasmuch as they failed to deduct the tax at source while making payments to the contractors. On these allegations a complaint under Section 276-B of the Act was filed against the petitioners.

(3.) The petitioners have sought quashment of the proceedings mainly on the following grounds: (i) That the averments made in the complaint do not attract the provisions of Section 194-C of the Act; (ii) That the petitioners have already undergone the proceedings for seven years with no progress in the trial and they are likely to suffer ordeal of . a trial for a further period of ten to fifteen years for a technical offence.