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TMI Blog1960 (10) TMI 80X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... referred to as the Act. For the account period April 1, 1948, to September 30, 1948, the appellants submitted a return of their turnover which included sales in Assam of all goods other than jute. The Superintendent of Taxes, Dhubri, summarily assessed the appellants under sub-section (4) of section 17 of the Act to pay tax on sales of jute despatched by them to Calcutta during the account period. Appeals against the order of assessment to the Assistant Commissioner of Taxes and to the Commissioner of Taxes, Assam, proved unsuccessful. The appellants then applied to the Commissioner of Taxes to refer certain questions arising out of the assessment to the High Court in Assam under section 34 of the Act. The Commissioner referred the followi ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... et aside and you are directed to produce necessary evidence, contract papers, account books, etc............in order to see whether the contract of sale involved in this case come within the purview of the Explanation to sub-section (12) of section 2 of the Act." By their letter dated March 23, 1953, the appellants called upon the Commissioner of Taxes to direct the Superintendent of Taxes not to proceed with the notice. The Commissioner having failed to direct as requested, the appellant petitioned the High Court in Assam under Article 226 of the Constitution for a writ prohibiting the Superintendent of Taxes from reopening and proceeding with the assessment of the appellants under the Assam Sales Tax Act and for a writ quashing the order ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ent which he sought to commence by issuing a notice requiring the appellants to produce evidence, contract papers, account books etc. so as to enable him to determine whether the transactions were taxable under the Explanation to sub-section (12) of section 2 had to be supported by some authority under the Act. The Superintendent of taxes has not referred to the authority in exercise of which he issued this notice. It is true that under section 19 of the Act, the "Taxation Officer" if satisfied upon information coming into his possession that any dealer has been liable to pay tax under the Act in respect of any period and has failed to apply for registration and to make the return required of him, may at any time within three years of the e ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... to commence an enquiry whether the sales involved in the case fell "within the purview of the Explanation to section 2, sub-section (12)". In any event, the account period as has already been observed was April 1, 1948, to September 30, 1948, and three years from the end of that period expired before the date on which the notice was issued. Fresh proceedings for reassessment could not be initiated by the Superintendent of Taxes under section 19 after the expiry of three years from the assessment period assuming that this could be regarded as a case of failure to apply for registration and to make a return required of the appellants. In support of his contention that the Superintendent of Taxes had authority to proceed to reassess the app ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... d under the original assessment, and for an order for disposal of certain proceedings initiated by it before the Assistant Commissioner and the Income-tax Officer. The High Court made an order directing refund of tax paid, and further directing cancellation of assessment. In an appeal preferred by the Commissioner of Income-tax against the order of the High Court, it was observed by the Privy Council that the Commissioner was not obliged to discontinue proceedings against the resident company as agent of the foreign company in respect of the year of assessment, and it was within the jurisdiction of the Commissioner under section 33(2) of the Income-tax Act to direct further enquiry if he thought such an enquiry to be reasonable and to be pr ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... of revisional authority and reopened the assessment. In the present case, no such direction has been given by an authority competent in that behalf: and the Superintendent had no power to reassess the income under section 19 assuming that the section applied to a case where the assessee though registered had failed to include his sales in a particular commodity in his turnover, because the period of limitation prescribed in that behalf had expired. The appeal must therefore be allowed and the order passed by the High Court set aside. In the circumstances of the case, no useful purpose will be served by remanding the case to the High Court. We accordingly direct that a writ quashing the proceedings commenced by the Superintendent of Taxes, ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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