Case Law Details
Fatema Hussain & Anr. Vs UOI & Ors. (Patna High Court)- Amount seized under section 132 can be utilised for the purpose of discharging the liability already determined on completion of the assessment proceedings and if that be the position then at best the amount that could be retained for discharging the liability will only be with regard to the assessment made in this particular case for the assessment years 2002-03, 2003-04 and 2004-05 as admitted by the petitioners in the rejoinder to the counter affidavit. Apart from the aforesaid, merely because assessment for the year 2015-16 is pending, no statutory right is available to the Department to retain any amount on this count.
Full Text of the High Court Judgment / Order is as follows:-
Facts on record go to show that on 21-3-2014 when the petitioners were carrying a sum of Rs. 30 lakhs in New Delhi purportedly having received it as certain sale proceeds, the authorities of the Income Tax Department at New Delhi seized the amount and thereafter when the amount was not released and no action was taken for a period of about two years, this writ petition has been filed.
2. In the meanwhile, the petitioners were issued with summons, vide annexure 5 on 24-3-2014 and immediately on 12-5-2014 the petitioners appeared before the authority in pursuance of the said notice and it is stated that the documents and explanation with regard to the amount was submitted. Thereafter, when nothing was done, the petitioners filed this writ petition and sought for release of the amount in question.
3. On notice being issued the Departmental authorities have filed a counter affidavit and that only justification for retaining the amount is the one, contained in para 8 of the counter affidavit, which for the sake of convenience is reproduced hereinunder :–
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