THE COMMISSIONER OF INCOME-TAX, ANDHRA PRADESH, HYDERABAD versus K. ADINARAYANA MURTY

THE COMMISSIONER OF

INCOME-TAX,

PRADESH, HYDERABAD v. K. ADINARAYANA MURTY

ANI>HRA

A

April 3, 1967 (J. C. SHAH, S. M. SIKRI AND V. RAMASWAMI, JJ.J lndian Income•tax Act, 1922, s. 34-Notice of reasscssme11t issued filed in status of HUF starus was HUF-Another issued-Assess111ent on return filed in response 10

to assessee in status of Appellate Authority ho/di11g notice under s. 34 second notice-Validity of asses.Hnent.

individual-Return that correct

The respondent had two sons. ·Prior to the assessment year 1954-55 the Income-tax Authorities assemd him as had of a Hindu undivided family. In 1954-55 the Income-tax Officer held that he was an 'individual' and assessed him accordingly. Thereafter, having ob'lained sanction from the Commissioner he issued to the respondent a not:ce under s. 34 of the Income-tax Act 1922 in respect of the. year 1949-50 in the status of an individual. A return was filed by the respondent in response to the notice. However in the appeal relating .to 1954-55 the Appellate Assistant Com miS&ioner held that the correct sta<us of the assesseo was that of a Hindu undivi<)ed family. The Income-tax Officer then issued another notice under s. 34 to the respondent in respect of 1949·50 in the status of a Hindu undivid~d family. On the return filed in response to this second notice the Income-tax Officer made an assessment adding certain "escaped In reference, the High Court held that the first of the notices under s. 34 was not ;nvalid in law and consequently the issue of the second notice was the assessment made in pursuance of it was illegal. The Revenu·• appealed to this Court.

· income" to that originally assessed for 1949-50.

illegal and

HELD : Under the scheme of the Income-tax Act the 'lndividul' and the 'Hindu undivided family' are treated as sepa·rate units of assessment and if a notice under s. 34 of the Act is wrongly issued to the assessee in the status of an 'individual' and not in the correct status of 'Hindu undivided family', the notice is illegal and ultra vires and without jurisdiction. [39JF-O]

The Income-tax Officer was therefore justified in ignoring the first notice under s. 34 of the Act and the return filed by the assessee in response to that notice and consequently the assessment made by the Income.tax [391H] Officer pursuant to the, second notice was a valid assessment.

CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION : Civil Appeal No. 632 of

1966.

~ppeal by special leave from the judgment and order dated April 14, 1964 of the Andhra Pradesh High Court in case refer red No. 46 of 1962.

3. Sen, GopaiSingh, S. P. Nayyar and R. N. Sachthey, for the

appellant.

S. T. Desai, B. Parthasarathy and 0. C. Mathur, for the res·

pondent.

B

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c.I.T. v. AD!NARAYANA (Ramaswam1, J.)

389

A

The Judgment of the Court was delivered by

.Ramaswami, J. This appeal is brought, by special leave, fro~ the judgment of the High Court of Andhra Pradesh dated Apnl 14, 1964 in Referred Case No. 46 of 1962.

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The respondent, hereinafter called the "assessee" was a Hindu Undivided family consisting of K. Ankineedu and his two sons. For the assessment year 1!149-50 corresponding to the previous financial year ending March 31, 1949, the assessee submitted a return in response to a notice sent to him. The Income-tax Officer computed h!S total income as Rs. 2,429 /- only which was below the taxable limit and so the assessee was declared not liable to pay income·!~. Subsequent to the assessment, the Income-tax Officer had information that the assessee had done some business as pro curement agent for the Government and in this. business he had earned large profits which had escaped assessment. Accordingly he issued a notice under s. 34 of the Income-tax Act, 1922 (here In response to the inaner called the 'Act') on March 22, 1957. notice the assessee made a return on April 30, 1957. Prior to the issue of the above notice the Income-tax Officer had taken the view in the assessment made for the year 1954-55 that the correot status of the assessee was not 'Hindu Undivided Family' but his. status was .. individual". In accordance with this view the notice under s. 34 of the Act was issued to the assessee on March 22, 1957 in the status of an 'individual'. As the proceeaings under this notice were continuing, but before the assessment could be made, the Appellate Assistant Commissioner in the appeal for the assessment year 1954-55 accepted the contention of the assessee and held that the status of the assessee was that of 'Hindu Undivi· ed Family' and not 'individual'. Thereafter, the Income-tax Officer issued a fresh notice under s. 34 on February 12, 1958 which was served on the assessee on the same day. This notice was issued to assess the income of the assessee as a 'Hindu Undivided Family' f~om the procurement business which had escaped .from the ori ginal ~ssessment made on February 10, 1950. A return in pur suance of the second notice was duly filed on February 28 1958 and the a5s~m~nt was ulti_mately made under s. 34 of the 'Act in ~ status of Hmdu Und!Vtded Family' on August 16, 1958. In JS a~sment, a sum of Rs. 60,000/- was included as the income escapmg the original assessment. The assessee pre ferred dan appeal to the Appellate Assistant Commissioner and co'!ten ed that the ~roceedings under s. 34 of the Act were not ¥ahd i:ause no not1~ cou~d be issu;d after the expiry of 8 years ~~: e ~lose of the preVtous year as distinct from the 'assess conte ~ar · _The Appellate Assistant Commissioner accepted the . r~ 101{!1sed by the assessee and held that the proceeding was Income-tax Officer took the matter in appeal before mva I

from

.

390

SUPREME COURT REPORTS

[1967] 3 S.C.R.

the Income-tax Appellate Tribunal and claimed that the period of limitation for starting proceedings under s. 34 was to be counted from the end of the 'assessment year' and not from the end of the 'previous year'; The Tribunal accepted his contention and over· ruled the view of the Appellate Assistant Commissioner on this point. The assessee also contended that the assessment proceed· ing started by the second notice dated February 12, 1958 was ·bad in Jaw as he had already made a return on April 30, 1957 which was in pursuance of the first notice under s. 34 issued on March 22, 1957. It appears from the statement of the case that the Income-tax Officer was required to disclose the particular notice on which he made the assessment. The Income-tax Officer said that the assessment was based on the second notice. .The Ap· pellate Tribunal took the view that the return filed by the assessee on April 30, 1957 in response to the first notice was not a valid return and the Income-tax Officer was not bound to act upon it. Accordingly the Appellate Tribunal held that the assessment made under the second notice was legally valid. Since the Appellate Assistant Commissioner did not deal with the merits of the assess ment the Appellate Tril)unal remanded the appeal to the Appellate Assistant Commissioner for being dealt with on merits. At the instance of the assessee the Appellate Tribunal stated case to the High Court on the following question of Jaw :

"Whether, on the facts and in the circumstances of the case, the assessment in pursuance of the notice issued under s. 34 on 12-2-1958 is a valid assessment?"

The High Court held that tht:. first notice dated March 22, 1957 was not invalid in Jaw and consequently the issue of the second notice on February 12, 1958 was illegal and the assessment made in pursuance of that notice was also illegal. The High Court ac cordingly answered the question of law in favour of the assessee.

The question presented for determination in this appeal is whe ther it was competent for the Income-tax Officer to issue the second notice dated February 12, 1958 and continue proceedings thereon ignoring the return already filed by the assessee in pursuance of the first notice under the same section. It was pointed out by Mr. S. T. Desai on behalf of the assessee that both the notices under s. 34 of the Act were in identical terms and were addressed to the assessee in his name and the issue of the second notice made no difference in its contents to the knowledge of the assessee. It was also contended that the assessee filed his return in the status of 'Hindu Undivided Family' in response to the first notice and the Income-tax Officer ought not to have ignored that return. We are unable to accept the argument put forward on behalf of the assessee as correct. The Income-tax Officer could not have validly acted on the return filed by the assessee in the status of 'Hindu Undivi-

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C.l.T. v. ADINilAYANA (Rama.swami, J.)

391

D

B

the assessee

A ded Family' and any assessment made by the Inoomc·tax Officer on such a retum would have been Invalid in law because the notice under s. 34 had been issued In the status of 'Individual' and sane· tion of the Commissioner for the issue of a notice under s. 34 was also obtained on that basis. We therefore consider that the Income· tax Officer was entitled to ignore the return filed by the assessee as non est in law. It is not disputed that the Income-tax Officer issued the first notice under s. 34 of the Act on March 22, 1957 to in the status of 'individual'. The Appellate Tribunal has stated in 3ara 3 of the statement of the case that the Income-tax Officer ha taken the view that the correct status of the assessee was 'individual' and in accordance with that view "a c notice under s. 34 was issued to the assessee as above for making an assessment in the status of 'individual' ". As there was some ambiguity in the statement of the case on this point, we referred to the orltat file of the income-tax proceedings and satisfied our- selves t at the assertion of fact made In the statement of the case is correct. It appears that on February 13, 1957 the Income-tax Officer had applied for the sanction of the Commissioner for in· stituting proceedings under s. 34(1)(a) of the Act against the assessee to make an assessment in the status of an 'individual' with regard to the procurement agency business. Sanction of the Commissioner was ~ven to the proposal of the Income-tax Officer and thereafter the st notice under s. 34 of the Act was issued on March 22, 1957. In this state of facts we are of opinion that the proceeding taken under the first notice under s. 34 of the Act was invalid and ultra vlres. The correct status of the assessee was that of 'Hindu Undivided Family' as was held by the Appellate Assistant Commis- sioner in the assessment for the year 1954-55 and since the first noti~e under s. 34 was issued to the assessee as an 'individual' for !llaktng assessment in that status, it is manifest that the proceed. F mgs taken under that notice were illegal and without jurisdiction. U'!der the scheme of the Income-tax Act the 'Indi:vidual' and th 'Hmdu Un~ivided .Family' are treated as separate units of assess: :i:nt and 1f .a notice under s. 34 of the Act is wrongly issued to statu.s of 'Hindu Undivided Family' fu~ ~~tic~ mot ~n the correct ceedings talren under that notice e is eg and all pro- It was contended by Ma:° 5ui;a r::s. and without juris. diction. assessee that the return was filed b · th Bl • on behalf of the first '!ot!ce in the character of 'Hin~u U 'J~C;"J: m r~ponse to the subm1ss10n of the return by the assess Family'. But the to the character of the proceedi .ee Will not make any difference which must be held to be illeg1:if mluruan~e of the first notice already stated. We are therefore of~ u !"! Vires for the reasons Officer was legally justified · . . he opimon that the Income-tax s. 34 of the Act and the re~8J:f ~ng the first notice issued under Y the assessee in response to that notice and consequently the assessment made by the Income-

assessee m the status of an 'ind· · d r d

11: !VI

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392

SUPREME COURT REPORTS

(1967] 3 S.<i.R.

tax Officer in pursuance of the six;ond notice issued on February 12, 195'8 was a valid assessment.

We accordingly allow this appeal, set aside the judgment of the High Court of Andhra Pradesh dated April 14, 1964 and hold that the question of law referred to the High Court should be ans wered in the affumatiYe and against the assessee. Thsre will be no order as to costs in this appeal.

A

B

G.C.

A pp~a/ allowed.

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