JAWAHAR LAL GUPTA Vs. INCOME TAX OFFICER

JUDGEMENT

(1.) BY means of the present writ petition, Sri Jawahar Lal Gupta, the petitioner, as an individual, has sought to challenge the notice dated January 15, 1991, issued by the Income-tax Officer, Ward-1(2), Agra, seeking to reopen the assessment proceedings under Section 147(1)(a) of the Income tax Act, 1961 (hereinafter referred to as "the Act"), for the assessment year 1989-90. Immediately on receipt of the said notice, the assessee had asked for a copy of the reasons recorded by the Income-tax Officer on which the assessment was sought to be reopened. Since no return was filed, the Income-tax Officer declined to do so until the return was filed. Aggrieved against the same, the petitioner had filed Writ Petition No. 353 of 1991 in this court, which was decided on April 18, 1991 (see [1992] 196 ITR 147 (All)). In the counter affidavit, the respondent had stated that he had never refused access to the reasons on which notice under Section 147(1)(a) of the Act was issued, nor had he refused a copy thereof. Rather the Income-tax Officer had, vide his letter dated July 18, 1991, informed the petitioner that he could inspect the reasons recorded for the issuance of the said notice after he had filed the return in compliance with the said notice under Section 147(1)(a) of the Act already served on him. At the time of hearing before the court, it was not in dispute that the assessee had submitted his return in pursuance of the notice under Section 147 of the Act. Accordingly, this court had directed that before the Income-tax Officer proceeds further to assess in pursuance of the said notice under Section 147 of the Act, he shall confront the assessee with the reasons recorded by him and supply him a copy thereof. It was also made clear that after the petitioner is confronted with the reasons and if he still feels aggrieved, it shall be open to the petitioner to challenge the notice under Section 147 of the Act on such grounds and before such forum which may be available to him under the law. The said writ petition was accordingly, disposed of on April 18, 1991. Thereupon, the Income-tax Officer supplied a certified copy of the reasons for the issuance of the said notice under Section 147 of the Act in the year in dispute. The said reasons are reproduced hereunder :

(2.) THUS, the assessment for the year in dispute is sought to be reopened on two counts as stated above. Before proceeding further, we have to take notice of the fact that for the assessment year 1989-90 (the year in dispute) three assessable entities are involved in this case. The first is Shri Jawahar Lal Gupta, the petitioner, in his capacity as an individual, second is Km. Mayura Gupta, minor daughter of Shri Jawahar Lal Gupta, in the status of an individual, and the third is Messrs. Continental Chemical Co., Rawat-pura, Agra, a registered firm. Along with the writ petition, the assessee has filed only a copy of the acknowledgment of the return (I. T. S. 2) filed by Shri Jawahar Lal Gupta, as an individual, for the assessment year 1989-90, but neither the copy of the return as filed in the original proceedings for the assessment year in dispute has been filed, nor has a copy of the return filed in response to the impugned notice under Section 147 of the Act for the assessment year 1989-90, been filed by Shri Jawahar Lal Gupta along with the writ petition. We find that the writ petition wrongly states that the copy of the return is being filed and marked as annexure I to the writ petition whereas, in fact, only a copy of the acknowledgment of the return has been filed and neither of the other aforesaid returns has been filed. Consequently, details which ought to have been submitted under the law by the assessee in regard to the income of the minor daughter have not been filed. The writ petition further states that along with the return, the petitioner has also filed (1) computation of income, (2) balance-sheet, (3) statutory audit statement and report on Form No. 3 CB, under rule 6G(1)(b) and Form No. 3 CD under rule 6G(2)(a). In paragraph 5 of the writ petition, it has further been averred that copies of the said documents are being filed as annexure 2 to the writ petition. But when we peruse annexure 2 aforesaid, we find that the said documents relate to Messrs. Continental Chemical Co., Rawatpura, Agra, i.e., a registered firm and not to the petitioner. It may be that the petitioner might have filed the said documents along with the return of the said registered firm, but no foundation has been laid in the writ petition whatsoever that the said documents have been filed by the petitioner, who is an individual, along with his return. At any rate even if the petitioner may have filed such documents, copies of none of such documents have been annexed to the writ petition.

(3.) COMING now to the second reason for reopening the assessment aforesaid, the position is as follows :