COMMISSIONER OF INCOME TAX Vs. T.M. KURIACHAN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE short question raised in the appeal filed by the Revenue is whether the Tribunal was justified in holding that in order to transfer a file by an Assessing Officer to another Assessing Officer to assess an assessee based on information gathered in search conducted on the premises of another assessee, the Officer transferring the file should record his satisfaction about the undisclosed income to be assessed at the hands of other assessee under Section 158BD of the Income Tax Act, 1961 (hereinafter referred to as the Act for short).

(2.) WE have heard learned Senior Standing Counsel Shri.P.K.R.Menon appearing for the Revenue and Shri.Arun Raj, learned counsel appearing for the respondent assessee.

(3.) SINCE the question to be considered is whether in the absence of satisfaction recorded by the Assessing Officer transferring the file to another Officer under Section 158BD the assessment completed under Section 158BC read with Section 158BD is invalid, we have to necessarily consider the scope of Section 158BD, for which the Section is extracted hereunder:-