(1.) In this case C form declarations were filed by the assessee not before the first assessment was completed, but at the stage of appeal before Appellate Assistant Commissioner. The Appellate Assistant Commissioner did not entertain the C forms. On further appeal, the Tribunal held that the assessee had not established that it was prevented by sufficient cause from filing the C form declaration within the time limited, namely, before completion of the assessment. In this view, they refused to entertain the C form declarations sought to be produced at the appellate stage. They further took the view that the appellate authority has really no power to entertain C form declarations when they had not been filed with the assessing authority before completion of the assessment.
(2.) The assessee has come before this Court in revision against the order of the Appellate Tribunal.
(3.) In a recent decision of a Full Bench of this Court in T.C. No. 78 of 1980, State of Tamil Nadu v. Arulmurugan and Company (disposed of on 2nd November, 1982) [1982] 51 STC 381 (FB), it has been held that C form declarations can be entertained out of time by the appellate authorities on sufficient cause and the power to grant further time is not limited to the assessing authority alone. It was also further held that the extension of time by the appellate authority as well as the assessing authority was not to depend upon the enquiry as to whether the assessee was prevented by sufficient cause from filing the C form declarations before the assessment was over, but whether, on a consideration of the entire circumstances, the appellate authority could consider the extension of time as called for on the basis of sufficient cause.