TMI Blog1998 (9) TMI 17X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... to the impugned notice. The facts of the case are brief and simple and can be stated thus. The Assistant Commissioner of Income-tax seized the assessee's books of account in the course of a search conducted at the assessee's business premises on November 2, 1988. According to the Revenue, the assessee was maintaining two sets of cash books in respect of the transactions for the first two months of the accounting year. It is an admitted position that from the date of their seizure, the books of account remained in the custody of the Revenue at all material times and continue to be in its possession till date. For the assessment year 1989-90 to which the seized books of account appertained, the assessee filed the return on March 31, 1991 ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... for the assessment year in question was to be completed, whether on the basis of the original return or on the basis of the revised return, by March 31, 1992. The assessment order passed on March 11, 1993, was, therefore, barred by limitation and void. For these reasons, the appellate authority annulled the assessment made by the Assistant Commissioner of Income-tax under assessment order, dated March 11, 1993. It was then that the impugned notice (annexure 3) was issued OD September 17, 1995, under section 148 of the Act. It neither disclosed the amount escaping assessment nor enclosed the materials which led the Assessing Officer to believe that any income had escaped assessment. The assessee, without filing a return in the prescribed ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... PD-38. From the memorandum it further appears that the expenses amounting to Rs. 1,01,069 which were recorded in PD-32 and PD 33 were not shown in PD-1. From the omission to show those expenses in PD-1, the Assessing Officer inferred that those expenses were made (during the first two months of the accounting year) from unaccounted income which had escaped assessment for the assessment year in question. The Assessing Officer accordingly resolved to make assessment/reassessment under section 147 of the Act and obtained the approval of the Commissioner of Income-tax on August 22, 1995, following which the impugned notice was issued on September 7, 1995. From the facts and circumstances stated above, it is manifest that though the assessmen ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... or assessment for the assessment year in question ? The assessee had filed a return under section 139 of the Act. Before the filing of the return, its books of account were seized and were in the possession of the Revenue. In those circumstances, the particulars furnished in the return could be easily verified by the Revenue and one fails to see how the assessee can be said to have failed to disclose fully and truly all material facts. In the counter-affidavit filed on behalf of the Revenue, it is stated that after the order was passed in appeal, the assessee's books of account which after seizure were lying in the Department were subjected to further careful examination and then it transpired that (for only two months of the accounting y ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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