Can the Income Tax department refuse to release documents to the assessee if SLP is pending Supreme court?

 Even otherwise, the statute confers authority to grant

authorisation for retaining the documents beyond the order of

assessment only till the proceedings under the Act is completed.

The word “proceedings under this Act” is a clear indication that

the power of the officers empowered to grant authorisation is

available only till the statutory proceedings are completed. Once

the statutory proceedings are completed, the authorities under

the statute are denuded of the power to grant further

authorisation. {Para 20}

21. The word proceeding is a term of wide importance and

it includes the original proceedings as well as the appellate

proceedings as it is trite law that an appeal is a continuation of

the original proceedings (see the decision in State of Tamil

Nadu and Others v. S. Subramaniam [(1996) 7 SCC 509]. In

the context in which the word ‘proceedings’ appear in section

132(8), it can be held to be used in a very comprehensive sense

to include even revisional proceedings, provided the same is

invoked under the statutory provisions of the Income Tax Act.

Thus an assessment proceeding, appellate proceeding, and even

revisional proceeding are all “proceedings under this Act”.

22. The proceedings under this Act expired by the disposal

of the appeal by this Court, as evidenced by Ext.P4 judgment

dated 08-01-2010. Thereafter, no proceedings under this Act are

in existence. On the contrary, the special leave petition having

been filed under Article 136 of the Constitution of India cannot

be regarded as a proceeding under this Act. As a taxing statute,

strict interpretation is to be adopted and that being so, recourse

by the assessee to the provisions of the Constitution by filing a

special leave petition before the Supreme Court cannot be

regarded as 'a proceeding under this Act'. Thus by the disposal

of the appeal filed before the High Court in I.T.A. No.819 of 2009

and I.T.A. No.1326 of 2009, the statutory authority lost its power

to grant further authorisation to retain the documents.

Therefore, even on this count, the respondents are not

authorised or justified in retaining the documents of title seized

by them under section 132 of the Act.

 IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM

WP(C) NO. 12849 OF 2021

UDAYA SOUNDS Vs THE PRINCIPAL COMMISSIONER OF INCOME TAX

PRESENT

 MR. JUSTICE BECHU KURIAN THOMAS

 24TH DAY OF MARCH 2022 

Print Page

When execution of gift deed will be affected by principle of lis pendens?

 In the present case, it would be
canvassed on behalf of the respondent and
the applicant that the sale has taken place
in favour of the applicant at a time when
there was no stay operating against such
sale, and in fact when the second appeal had
not been filed. We would however, prefer to
follow the dicta in Krishanaji Pandharinath
to cover the present situation under the
principle of lis pendens since the sale was
executed at a time when the second appeal
had not been filed but which came to be
filed afterwards within the period of
limitation. The doctrine of lis pendens is
founded in public policy and equity, and if
it has to be read meaningfully such a sale
as in the present case until the period of
limitation for second appeal is over will
have to be held as covered under Section 52
of the TP Act.”
(emphasis laid by this Court)
REPORTABLE
IN THE SUPREME COURT OF INDIA
CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION
CIVIL APPEAL NO. 2820 OF 2015

KIRPAL KAUR Vs. JITENDER PAL SINGH & ORS. 

Dated; July 14, 2015
Citation;(2015) 9 SCC356,2016(2) MHLJ542
V. GOPALA GOWDA, J.

Print Page