MOPEDS INDIA LTD Vs. COMMISSIONER OF INCOME TAX

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE following two questions are referred to us under section 256(1) of the Income-tax Act :

(2.) THE assessment years concerned herein are 1974-75, 1975-76 and 1976-77. Identical questions were referred to this court for the assessment year 1973-74 in R.C. No. 13 of 1979 (see [1988] 172 ITR 552). A Bench of this court consisting of Raghuvir J. and Ramanujulu Naidu J.answered the first question in the affirmative, i.e.,in favour of the Revenue and against the assessee, and on that basis declined to answer the second question as unnecessary. When this reference came up before us, it was contended by learned standing counsel for the Revenue that in view of the decision of the Bench relating to the earlier assessment year, it is not necessary to argue the matter over again and that the same answers should be recorded by us also in this reference.

(3.) MR. Ch. Srirama Rao, however, argued that the decision of the Bench in R.C. No. 13 of 1979 is based upon a particular statement in para. 5 of the statement of case in that referred case to the effect : "It was part of the instalments payable to the foreign supplier for supply of plant and machinery. Its nature cannot, therefore, be different from that of the instalments themselves." Learned counsel says that no such statement is found in the statement of facts submitted in the present referred case. We are, however, not satisfied that there is any such difference in facts in both cases. The Tribunal obviously thought it unnecessary to repeat all the facts in the present statement of case inasmuch as all of them were stated in the statement of case submitted in R.C. No. 13 of 1979. Indeed, the statement of case in R.C. No. 13 of 1979 is made a part of the statement of the case in this case. Para. 5 of the statement of the case herein reads as follows :