9911796707
TMI Blog2002 (12) TMI 53X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... by the Income-tax Officer. Shorn of unnecessary details, the material facts are as follows: The assessee is an individual, deriving income from pension, house property and profession. For the assessment year 1972-73, for which the relevant previous year ended on March 31, 1972, he filed his return of income on December 4, 1972. The assessment for the said assessment year was completed on March 10, 1975. Since, in the opinion of the Income-tax Officer, there was default on the part of the assessee in paying the requisite amount of advance tax and there was delay in filing the return as well, he levied interest under sections 215 and 139(8) of the Act. Although non-waiver of interest under section 139(8) of the Act is also challenged in th ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 215." Hence the present petition. No reply affidavit has been filed on behalf of the respondents despite the fact that the petition has been pending for over two decades. We have accordingly heard learned counsel for the parties. It is submitted by Mr. R. S. Suri, learned counsel for the petitioner, that both the authorities below having found that the delay in completing the assessment was not attributable to the assessee, the interest charged under section 215 should have been waived. It is urged that there is not even an allegation against the assessee that he did not co-operate in the investigation conducted by the Revenue, which resulted in the delay in completion of the assessment. It is, thus, asserted that the Income-tax Officer ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... rder passed by the Income-tax Officer there is a bald observation that the delay was attributable to the assessee the said observation is without any basis. The mere fact that the delay in completion of the assessment was occasioned because of the search conducted by the Revenue at the premises of the assessee would not per se show that the assessee was responsible for the delay. How and in what manner the assessee was responsible for delaying the proceedings must be indicated in the order refusing to reduce or waive the interest charged. It is also evident from the afore-extracted portion of the order of the Commissioner that he has also laid emphasis on an irrelevant fact that there was no delay in completion of the assessment, which coul ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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