CIT Vs Vellore Institute of Technology (Madras High Court)
The Revenue filed appeals under Section 260A of the Income Tax Act, 1961 challenging a common order of the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal, Chennai ‘B’ Bench, relating to the assessment years 2002-03 to 2004-05. The appeals raised two substantial questions of law. The first questioned whether the Tribunal was correct in extending an interim stay beyond the statutory period of 365 days prescribed under the third proviso to Section 254(2A) of the Act. The second questioned whether the Tribunal was justified in taking up the appeals for hearing when the main issue was pending before the Special Bench of the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal at Hyderabad. During the hearing before the High Court, the Revenue submitted that the main appeals had already been disposed of by the Tribunal and, therefore, the tax case appeals were not pressed. The High Court recorded this submission and observed that, in view of the subsequent development during the pendency of the appeals, the need to decide the substantial questions of law no longer survived, as the issues had become academic. Accordingly, the High Court dismissed the tax case appeals as infructuous and left the substantial questions of law open. No order as to costs was passed.
