VITHALDAS JAYAWANT Vs. COMMISSIONER OF INCOME TAX

JUDGEMENT

(1.) AT the instance of the revenue, the following question has been referred to us for our determination :

(2.) MESSRS . Vithaldas Jayawant, the assessee, is a partnership firm having its head office at Nagpur and branches at Mangalore, Cochin, etc. It keeps books of account according to the Diwali year and for the relevant assessment year 1963 -64, the previous year ended on October 28, 1962. The return of the assessee ought to have been filed under section 139(1) of the Income -tax Act, 1961, latest by June 30, 1963. It is the case of the assessee that it filed on or about June 15, 1963, an application in Form No. 6 requesting for an extension of time for filing the return which was due on June 30, 1963. Ultimately, the assessee filed the return on March 30, 1964, disclosing an income of Rs. 1,08,696. The Income -tax Officer made an assessment under section 143(3) determining the tax payable by the assessee at tax payable by the assessee at Rs. 6,968 and levied interest in accordance with the proviso to section 139(1) in the sum of Rs. 2,535.

(3.) IN an appeal by the assessee, the very same contentions were sought to be urged before the Appellate Assistant Commissioner, for explaining the cause of delay in filing the return. The Appellate Assistant commissioner carefully examined the records of the income -tax department and found that no application in Form No. 6, as alleged by the assessee, was on record; nor was any evidence produced a indicate that such an application was filed nor was a copy thereof produced before him.