1964 (3) TMI 11 - SC - Income Tax

True construction of the provisions of section 4 of the Indian Income-tax (Amendment) Act, 1959 (1 of 1959) questioned

Held that:- The clear intention of the legislature is to save the validity of the notice as well as the assessment from an attack on the ground that the notice was given beyond the prescribed period. That intention would be effectuated if the wider meaning is given to the expression " issued ". The dictionary meaning of the expression " issued " takes in the entire process of sending the notice as well as the service thereof. The said word used in section 34(1) of the Act itself was interpreted by courts to mean " served ". The limited meaning, namely, " sent " will exclude from the operation of the provision a class of cases and introduce anomalies. In the circumstances, by interpretation, we accept the wider meaning the word " issued " bears. In this view, though the notices were served beyond the prescribed time, they were saved under section 4 of the Amending Act. Appeal dismissed.