COMMISSIONER OF INCOME-TAX Vs. Y H UDGIRI

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE Commissioner of Income-tax, Kolhapur, has filed this application under section 256 (2)of the Income-tax Act, 1961, requesting that the Income-tax Tribunal be directed to refer to this court the various question formulated in para 6 of the application. The said questions read as under :

(2.) ALL these questions pertain to imposition of penalty under section 271 (1) (c) of the income-tax Act, 1961, for the assessment years 1973-74 and 1974-75 and the cancellation thereof. On March 30, 1979, the Income-tax Officer, F-Ward, Sholapur, passed his order imposing penalty of Rs. 40,000 on the assessee under section 271 (1) (a) of the Act in respect of the assessment year 1973-74. On the same day, the Income-tax Officer passed a similar order imposing penalty of Rs. 40,000 in relation to assessment year 1974-75. Being aggrieved by these two orders, the assessee filed two appeals before the Appellate Assistant Commissioner of income-tax, Sholapur. The Appellate Assistant Commissioner of Income-tax came to the conclusion that the above-referred orders passed by the Income-tax Officer were without jurisdiction on the ground that the Inspecting Assistant Commissioner alone had jurisdiction to impose penalty. Against the orders passed by the Appellate Assistant Commissioner of income-tax setting aside the orders imposing penalty, the Commissioner of income tax filed departmental appeals which were disposed of by the Income-tax Appellate Tribunal by its order passed by the Income-tax Officer could not be said to be without jurisdiction. However, the income-tax Appellate Tribunal came to the conclusion that there was no justification for imposition of penalty. The Income-tax Appellate Tribunal did not accept the request of the department to remand the matter and dismissed the appeals of the Department on merits. No reference application was filed under section 256 (1) of the Income-tax Act, 1961. Thus, the said order dated February 29, 1984, acquired finality subject to the rectification thereof on a valid ground, if any. At a later stage, i. e. , on June 24, 1985, the Income-tax Officer, A-Ward, sholapur, filed a miscellaneous application being Miscellaneous Application No. 11/pn/1984 for rectification of the order of the Tribunal dated February 29, 1984. The Tribunal has held that no case for rectification was made out and that the different paragraphs of the Tribunal's judgment were not contradictory to each other as erroneously contended for by the Department in the above referred application. The Tribunal, however, deleted some of its observations made in its appellate order. The Tribunal partly allowed the said miscellaneous application. By its order dated July 16, 1986, the Tribunal rejected the application of the Commissioner for making reference to this court under section 256 (1) of the Act.

(3.) HAVING regard to the facts and circumstances of the case, we are satisfied that no referable question arises in this case. We agree with the reasoning and the conclusion of the Tribunal contained in its order dismissing the application of the Department for rectification of the order of the Tribunal dated June 24, 1985, in appeals pertaining to the assessment years 1973-74 and 1974-75.