CHAUDHURI D C Vs. AGRICULTURAL INCOME TAX OFFICER

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THESE Civil Rules arise out of petitions filed under article 226 of the Constitution of India, and as a common question of law is raised, these are disposed of by one common judgment.

(2.) THE petition under article 226 of the constitution which has given rise to Civil Rule No. 238 of 1961 has been filed by the Eastern Tea Estate Private Limited. THE case of the petitioner is that it is a private limited company incorporated in the State of Assam on the 4th July, 1950, and has its registered office at Silchar. Two tea estates are owned by this private limited company known as Chandana Tea Estate and Martycherra Tea Estate. THE Chandana Tea Estate was purchased in 1950 from the Indian Tea and Mill Industries Limited. THE transfer took place on the 15th May, 1950, to the promoters of the petitioner company, though the actual conveyance was executed and registered on 27th September, 1950. THE Martycherra Tea Estate was purchased from Messrs. D. C. Chaudhuri and S. C. Dutt on the 9th July, 1953. This petitioner also received a notice under the Indian Income-tax Act for the assessment year 1951-52. As no notice under section 19 (2) of the Assam Agricultural Income-tax Act, 1939, was received by the petitioner for the assessment years 1951-52 to 1955-56, both inclusive, no returns were filed. On the 19th October, 1959, the petitioner received a letter from respondent No. 1, the Agricultural Income-tax Officer, Shillong, asking the petitioner to submit returns and certified central assessment copies in respect of Martycherra Tea Estate for the assessment years 1950-51 and onward. THE petitioner company wrote on the 18th November, 1959, to the Agricultural Income-tax Officer that no notice was served on the petitioner under the Act previously, and that the letter dated the 19th October, 1959, was the first communication on the subject. In this letter, it was pointed out that the petitioner owned the Chandana Tea Estate, beside the Martycherra Tea Estate, and the petitioner proposed to submit returns for the years in respect of which it was liable under the Act. On the 19th October, 1959, the petitioner received a notice under section 19 (2) of the Act in the prescribed form, which directed the petitioner to submit the returns of agricultural income in respect of the previous year for Martycherra Tea Estate. In response to this notice, the petitioner submitted the return for the year ending 31st December, 1958, in respect of the agricultural income from both these two tea estates. After the said return was submitted on the 18th December, 1959, the petitioner received another letter dated the 20th August, 1959, directing the petitioner to submit returns of agricultural income and copies of central assessments in respect of Chandana Tea Estate for the years 1951-52 and onward on the allegation that the petitioner had purchased the said estate from one late Bipin Chandra Bhattacharjya in 1949. On the same day, a notice under section 19 (2) of the Act was received in respect of the Chandana Tea Estate and another notice under section 30 of the Act in the prescribed form, alleging that agricultural income from all sources chargeable to agricultural income-tax for the assessment years, ending 31st March, 1958 and 1959, had wholly escaped assessment and the petitioner was directed to deliver within thirty days of the receipt of the notice, a return in the prescribed form. On the 23rd December, 1959, the petitioner sent a letter indicating compliance of the notice under section 30, and respondent No. 1 was informed that the return for the assessment year 1956-60 had already been sent on the 18th November, 1959. On the 7th January, 1960, the petitioner received another letter dated January 2, 1960, asking the petitioner to submit return and central assessment copies for the assessment years 1950-51 to 1958-59. THE returns for the assessment years 1957-58 and 1958-59 were sent on the 13th January, 1960. It was pointed out in the covering letter that the income-tax assessments for these years were not yet completed. On the 25th January, 1960, the petitioner received another letter dated the 23rd January, 1960, from respondent No. 1, alleging that the petitioner had failed to submit the returns for the years 1950-51 to 1958-59, and asked the petitioner to show cause in writing why the assessments for these years should not be completed summarily. Cause was shown by the petitioners letter dated the 24th February, 1960. THE petitioner was reminded to submit the returns for the years 1950-51 to 1956-57, by letter dated September 12, 1960. By letter dated November 2, 1960, the petitioner was asked to appear before the Agricultural Income-tax Officer on the 23rd November, 1960, in connection with the assessments for the years 1950-51 and onward and on that date, the petitioners accountant appeared before the Agricultural Income-tax Officer and pointed out that no notice under section 19 (2) or under section 30 of the Act was served in respect of the assessment years 1950-51 to 1956-57. On the 22nd February, 1961, the petitioner was asked to produce certain documents mentioned in the letter, and on March 1, 1961, the petitioner enquired under which provision of the Act, the demand to produce the said documents was made. On the 25th June, 1961, the petitioner received an assessment order dated June 19, 1961, in respect of the assessment year 1951-52 made under section 20 (4) of the Act, together with a notice of demand under section 23 of the Act for payment of Rs. 2,573.50 nP. as agricultural income-tax. This order of the 19th June, 1961, has been challenged by the petition numbered as Civil Rule No. 238. Civil Rule No. 239 of 1961 arises out of a petition by which the agricultural income-tax assessed under section 20 (4) of the Act for the assessment year 1952-53 has been challenged. Civil Rule No. 240 of 1961 arises out of a petition by which the assessment order dated June 19, 1961, in respect of the assessment year 1953-54 has been challenged. Civil Rule No. 241 of 1961 relates to the assessment made on the 19th June, 1961, for the assessment year 1954-55. Civil Rule No. 242 of 1961 relates to the assessment made on the 19th June, 1961, for the assessment year 1955-56.

(3.) SECTIONS 19, 20 and 21 read as under :