Kar Vivad Samadhan Scheme does not bar reassessment on undisclosed deduction claims; reopening on section 80HH upheld.

Settlement under the Kar Vivad Samadhan Scheme is generally conclusive on matters stated in the declaration and ordinarily bars reopening on those covered issues. However, the statutory provisos preserve the power to revive proceedings where the declaration contains false material particulars, and the settlement certificate may be amended for recorded reasons. Here, the reassessment concerned the assessee's eligibility for deduction under section 80HH, and that issue was not shown to have been disclosed in the declaration before the designated authority. The scheme therefore did not shield the assessee from reassessment on that point, and the reopening of the assessment was valid.

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Issues: Whether the assessee, having settled the tax dispute under the Kar Vivad Samadhan Scheme, could resist reopening of the assessment on the ground that the matters covered by the scheme were conclusive and not liable to be reopened.

Analysis: The scheme makes the designated authority's determination conclusive as to matters stated therein, and ordinarily bars reopening of matters so covered. However, the provisos to the provision governing settlement preserve the power to revive the proceedings where material particulars furnished in the declaration are false, and the certificate may also be amended for recorded reasons. The reassessment in the present case concerned the assessee's eligibility to claim deduction under section 80HH, a matter which was not shown to have been disclosed as part of the declaration before the designated authority. The settlement therefore did not protect the assessee from reassessment on that issue.

Conclusion: The reopening of the assessment was held to be valid, and the assessee's challenge to the reassessment failed.

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