Case Law Details
B. J. Services Company Middle East Ltd. and others Vs. DDIT (Uttarakhand High Court)- The combined effect of the provisions of Section 44BB, 44DA and 115A of the Act will not have a bearing to the cases in hand in as much as the Explanatory Note to the Finance Bill, 2010 clearly indicates that the amendments proposed in Section 44BB and 44DA of the Act would take effect from 1st April, 2011 and would apply in relation to the assessment year 2011-2012 and subsequent years. The amendment is prospective in nature and would not apply to the cases in hand which is of the earlier assessment years. Under the existing provisions contained in Section 44BB, 44D, Section 115A and Explanation II of section 9 (1) (vii) of the Act, it was open to the Assessing Officer to tax the petitioner either under Section 44BB or 44D or under Section 9 (1) (vii) of the Act on the basis of the material produced before him.
The primary facts were placed by the assessee before the Assessing Officer, who after due enquiry and verification, applied its mind to the facts of each case and came to the conclusion that the assessee was liable to be taxed under Section 44 BB of the Act. The Explanatory Note to the Finance Bill has removed the doubts, which had been raised regarding the scope of Section 44BB vis-à-vis Section 44DA has only been made prospectively and cannot be used or applied for reopening the case under Section 147 and 148 of the Act. In any case, the explanatory note does not mean that there was failure on the part of the assessee as envisaged by the provisions of Section 147 or in any manner the assessee suppressed the material facts or failed to disclose fully and truly all material facts necessary for the assessment. In view of the aforesaid, the court is satisfied that the petitioner has made out a case for a writ of certiorari and accordingly the notice issued by the respondent under Section 147 and 148 of the Act are quashed.
It was held that once all the primary facts have been disclosed, the assessee was not required to provide any further assistance by way of disclosure to the AO. The AO had reviewed the contracts/ agreements relating to providing services and facilities in connection with exploration and production of mineral oils. Once the assessment order is passed, a presumption is raised that such an order has been passed on an application of mind.
The decision lays down two important principles on the interpretation of provisions relating to reassessment proceedings:
Please become a Premium member. If you are already a Premium member, login here to access the full content.
