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2018 (9) TMI 1697 - HC - Income TaxSettlement applications u/s 245C(1) - rejection of application - Abatement of proceeding before Settlement Commission - Held that:- Considering the Scheme of Section 245HA and the object and purpose of proceedings before the Settlement Commission under Section 245 we are of the opinion that against the order passed by the Settlement Commission either rejecting and/or declaring the application invalid and/or considering the application for some of the years and not considering the application for all the years for which the application is submitted, only the assessee/ applicant can be said to be aggrieved. Therefore, the present petition at the instance of the Revenue challenging the order passed by the Settlement Commission not considering the settlement application for all the years for which the application was submitted is not required to be considered further on merits as the petitioner-Department cannot be said to be aggrieved by such an order. For the reasons stated even the submission on behalf of the Department at the instance of the Department that the applications were preferred before the amendment, i.e. prior to 1st June, 2007, and the order under Section 245D(1) has not been made before the 1st day of June, 2007, and therefore, such applications shall be deemed to have been allowed to be proceeded further, is not required to be entertained. For the reasons stated hereinabove, it is the assessee who has approached the Settlement Commission by way of application can make a grievance that in view of the deemed allowing the application, his application ought to have been considered for all the years for which the application was submitted. Number of submissions have been made by learned counsel appearing on behalf of the Revenue on whether the order dated 04.12.2007 by which the Settlement Commission decided to proceed further with the settlement application for some of the years only was received by the Department or not. Considering the material on record, it can be said that there are disputed questions of fact on the aforesaid. However, considering the subsequent communication which as such was received in which it is specifically mentioned and the Report was called only for some of years for which the order dated 04.12.2007 was passed, it can be said that the Department had the knowledge. That thereafter, the Settlement Commission has passed the final order under Section 245D(4) of the Act with respect to some of the years for which the order was passed dated 04.12.2007. Only thereafter, the Department woke up and submitted the rectification application which is rightly rejected by the Settlement Commission. Challenge to the order passed by the Settlement Commission on merits is by way of amendment and when the petition was preferred originally, no such averments were made. Even thereafter, there is no specific prayer to quash and set aside the order passed by the Settlement Commission on merits. Considering the limited scope of judicial review as pronounced by the Hon’ble Supreme Court as well this Court in a catena of decisions, the order passed by the Settlement Commission is not required to be interfered with. As observed by the Hon’ble Supreme Court and this Court in a catena of decisions, the Court is not required to consider the legality and validity of the order passed by the Settlement Commission as an appeal against the order passed by the Assessing Officer.
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