The Hindu : New Delhi News : Notice to Centre on Jayalalithaa’s plea in IT case

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Feb 09, 2008
ePaper | Mobile/PDA Version

New Delhi

New Delhi

Notice to Centre on Jayalalithaa’s plea in IT case

J. Venkatesan

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday issued notice to the Centre on a special leave petition filed by former Chief Minister Jayalalithaa, challenging a Madras High Court judgment quashing an Income Tax Settlement Commission order in her favour in connection with the income tax returns for assessment year 1998-99.

A Bench of Justice S.H. Kapadia and Justice B. Sudershan Reddy issued notice after hearing senior counsel Harish Salve and Arun Jaitley, appearing for the petitioner, and Solicitor-General G.E. Vahanvati for the department. It posted the matter for final hearing on February 25.

Passing orders on a batch of writ petitions filed by Commissioner of Income Tax (Central II) against Ms. Jayalalithaa and others, the High Court on December 10, 2007 had held that Ms. Jayalalithaa was not entitled to take advantage of Section 245-C of the Income Tax Act.

The matter relates to Ms. Jayalalithaa’s disclosure of Rs.3,51,780 as returns for that assessment year. This was revised to Rs.4,57,520. The assessing officer passed orders adding Rs.1.72 crore to the original amount.

She appealed against this order and, when the income tax officer did not accept the claim and, instead, assessed it as her income, she moved the Income Tax Commissioner (Appeals) against the finding.

When the appeal was pending, she approached the Settlement Commission, which accepted her contention. The High Court, on a petition from the department, asked the Commission to reject her application.

Assailing the High Court judgment, Ms. Jayalalithaa in her SLP said amounts covered by the settlement application satisfied the requirement of Section 245-C of the IT Act in that the return of income originally filed did not include the said amounts but were added by the Assessing Officer.

She said the order of the Settlement Commission was challenged by the department with oblique motive.

“The petitioner apprehends that as a consequence of the forbearance of the Settlement Commission from proceeding with the settlement application, the revenue would seek to mire the petitioner in vexatious and oppressive proceedings,” she said, and prayed for quashing the impugned judgment and an interim stay of its operation.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

New Delhi