SHAKUNTLA DEVI Vs. DEPUTY COMMISSIONER OF INCOME TAX

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS order will dispose of four writ petition Nos. 17549, 17991, 17992 and 18904 of 1998 arising out of the same order of the Tribunal in which common question of law and fact are involved. Since arguments were addressed in civil writ petition No. 17549 of 1998, the facts are being taken from this case.

(2.) BY order dt. 27th March, 1990, the Asstt. CIT, Karnal, framed an assessment under s. 143(3) of the IT Act, 1961 (for short the Act), for the asst. yr. 1987-88 on a total income of Rs. 17,58,830 against the returned income of Rs. 26,200. Feeling aggrieved by this order, the petitioner filed an appeal before the CIT(A) who partly allowed the same. Still not satisfied, she went up in appeal before the Tribunal, New Delhi. The Department also felt aggrieved by the appellate order and preferred an appeal before the Tribunal. Both the appeals were disposed of together by order passed on 11th Sept., 1996. One of the grounds on which the Department felt aggrieved by the appellate order was the deletion of Rs. 15,11,287 by the appellate authority. The Tribunal disposed of this issue in para No. 8 of its order and observed as under :

(3.) IN the reply filed by the Department, it is pleaded that the petitioner has challenged the notice and since no order prejudicial to her interest has been passed, the petition, according to the respondent, is not maintainable. On merits, it is averred that since proceedings before the Settlement Commission had not been completed, a fresh assessment had to be made on or before 31st March, 1999, and, therefore, the AO was justified in issuing the impugned notice.