(1.) THE applicant (Commissioner of Income-tax, Bhopal) has filed this application under Section 256(2) of the Income-tax Act, 1961 (for short "the Act"), seeking a direction to the Tribunal to state the case and to refer the undernoted questions arising out of the order dated September 17, 1987, passed by the Tribunal in I. T. A. No. 743/Ind/l984 for the assessment year 1973-74 after rejection of the application registered as R. A. No. 145/Ind/87 on November 29, 1988, for our consideration and opinion :
(2.) BRIEFLY stated, the facts of the case are that the deceased Smt. Rambhabai filed the return on May 29, 1975, in her individual status. The regular assessment was completed on May 29, 1975. The assessment was set aside by the Appellate Assistant Commissioner on January 25, 1979. In compliance with the direction, a fresh assessment was made and completed on February 28, 1981. Before completion, Smt. Rambhabai died on August 22, 1980. The fact of her death was communicated to the Income-tax Officer by letter dated December 15, 1980. The assessment proceedings continued. On an examination, her sons disclosed that Rambhabai had left a will. On acquisition of knowledge of existence of the will, the Assessing Officer rectified the mistake on April 10, 1981, and substituted the name of Smt. Kamlabai in place of Shri Fatelal, the legal representative of Rambhabai, under Section 154 of the Act. The non-applicant filed an appeal which was allowed. The non-applicant then filed an appeal before the Tribunal contending that mere setting aside was not enough and that the assessment should be annulled. The Tribunal then allowed the appeal and annulled the assessment. The applicant then filed an application under Section 256(1) of the Act. The application was rejected. The applicant then filed this application under Section 256(2) of the Act and proposed the above-noted questions.
(3.) IN Jai Prakash Singh v. CIT [1978] 111 ITR 507 (Gauhati) it is laid down that if the estate of a deceased assessee is to be assessed to income-tax, the estate must be fully represented by impleading all the legal representatives by serving notices under Section 143(2) and that in default of such a procedure, the assessment proceedings would be invalid and would become liable to be annulled.