TRIDIP KUMAR SARMA Vs. COMMISSIONER OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) By this common judgment and order we propose to dispose of W.A. No. 585 of 2002 and W.A. No. 586 of 2002 arising; out of the judgment and orders dated 10.10.2002 passed by the learned Single Judge in W.P.(C) No. 6733 of 2002 and W.P.(C) No. 6727 of 2002.

(2.) In both the writ petitions, the writ petitioners/appellants who are the Consultants attached to M/s Down Town Hospitals Ltd., challenged the notice issued by the respondent authority under Section 158 BD of the Income Tax Act, 1961 read with Section 158 BC for submission of true and correct return for the block period from 01.04.1988 to 04.02.1999. The notice had been issued to the writ petitioners/appellants for the purpose of preparation of true and correct return of total income including undisclosed incomes for the aforesaid block period. The background leading to the issuance of the notice is that a search was conducted under Section 132 of the Income Tax Act, 1961 in the business premises of M/s Down Town Hospitals Ltd., Guwahati in the month of February, 1999 and during the course of search, certain documents, i.e. books and accounts and other documents of assets were seized and on the basis of those seized documents, the impugned notices were issued calling upon the writ petitioners/appellants to submit returns in the Form No. 2B duly verified and signed in accordance with the provisions of Section 140 of Income Tax Act within a period of 15 days from the date of service of notice.

(3.) In response to those notices, the writ petitioners/appellants through their Advocates requested the authorities to issue the certified copy of the order sheet/satisfaction note recorded by the authority during the course of proceeding for block assessment in the case of the M/s Down Town Hospital Ltd. based upon which the proceedings under Section 158BD have been initiated in the case of the writ petitioners/appellants. Consequently, the appellants submitted applications before the respondent No. 2, i.e., the Assistant Commissioner of Income Tax Circle-1, Guwahati challenging the jurisdiction of the authority in invoking the powers under Section 158 BD of the Income Tax Act, 1961 on the ground that the 'undisclosed income' purportedly received by the writ petitioners/appellants from M/s Down Town Hospital Ltd. had already been assessed as "undisclosed income" of the M/s Down Town Hospital Ltd. under Section 158BC (c)/143(3) on 28.02.2001. A request was also made for dropping the proceedings initiated U/S 158 BD.