Jurisdiction to initiate tax proceedings shifts to the Assistant Commissioner once assessment powers are vested under the statutory order.

Where the Commissioner had, under section 3-B(4), vested assessment powers in the Assistant Commissioner for the relevant class of cases, clause (b) treated references to the Commercial Tax Officer or assessing authority as references to the Assistant Commissioner, and the Explanation extended that position to proceedings commenced after the order. Because the earlier assessment had already been completed and no proceeding was pending when the order was made, the Commercial Tax Officer was not the competent authority to initiate proceedings under section 12-A. The notice issued by him was therefore without jurisdiction and invalid.

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Issues: Whether the Commercial Tax Officer had jurisdiction to initiate proceedings under section 12-A after the Commissioner had, by order under section 3-B(4), vested the relevant assessment powers in the Assistant Commissioner.

Analysis: Section 3-B(4) empowered the Commissioner to direct that the powers of the Commercial Tax Officer be exercised by the Assistant Commissioner in specified classes of cases. Once such an order was issued, clause (b) deemed references in the Act to the Commercial Tax Officer or assessing authority to be references to the Assistant Commissioner for the covered cases, and the Explanation extended this to proceedings commenced after the date of the order. As the earlier assessment had already been completed and no proceeding was pending when the Commissioner's order was made, the Commercial Tax Officer was no longer the competent authority to start proceedings under section 12-A. The notice issued by him was therefore without jurisdiction.

Conclusion: The commencement of proceedings under section 12-A by the Commercial Tax Officer was invalid and without authority of law; the assessee succeeded.

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