TMI Blog1970 (5) TMI 6X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... reinafter called "the assessee"--is a Hindu undivided family which carries on the business of money-lending at Lucknow and is also interested as a partner in different firms engaged in the business of manufacturing barbed wire, pharmaceuticals, etc. On September 14, 1964, the Income-tax Officer, A-Ward, called upon the assessee to furnish within 10 days certain information with regard to its income and assets. On September 17, 1964, the Income-tax Officer submitted to the Commissioner of Income-tax a report requesting that he be authorised to enter and search the premises of the assessee. The Commissioner by his order dated September 19, 1964, authorised entry and search after recording reasons for his belief that it was necessary to car ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ing the raid and the Income-tax Officers carried away thousands of promisory notes. Some of the documents seized appear to be irrelevant for assessment purposes and some of them were public documents ; (4) There is reason to believe that all or almost all the documents found on the premises were seized and carried away by the Income-tax Officers ; (5) Marks of identification were not placed on the documents in spite of the direction contained in the letters of authorisation ; and (6) The documents seized during the raid were detained by the Income-tax Officers for 19 months before the petition was filed. In the view of the High Court the circumstances of the case indicated that the Commissioner of Income-tax and the Income-tax O ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... icles or other things found in the course of the search. Since by the exercise of the power a serious invasion is made upon the rights, privacy and freedom of the taxpayer, the power must be exercised strictly in accordance with the law and only for the purposes for which the law authorises it to be exercised...If the conditions for exercise of the power are not satisfied the proceeding is liable to be quashed... The Act and the Rules do not require that the warrant of authorisation should specify the particulars of documents and books of account. A general authorisation to search for and seize documents and books of account relevant to or useful for any proceeding complies with the requirements of the Act and the Rules. It is for the of ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ng 180 days. Section 132(2) as in force on the date on which the search and seizure took place stood as follows : " The books of account or other documents seized under sub-section (1) shall not be retained by the Inspecting Assistant Commissioner or the Income-tax Officer for a period exceeding one hundred and eighty days from the date of the seizure unless the reasons for retaining the same are recorded by him in writing and the approval of the Commissioner for such retention is obtained :....." By the Finance Act of 1965, sub-section (2) was re-enacted by sub-section (8) with the modification that for the words "Inspecting Assistant Commissioner or the Income-tax Officer" the words "authorised officer" be substituted. In the ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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