Assessing officer cannot challenge charitable institution registration during reopening

The court upheld the Tribunal's decision that an assessing officer cannot challenge the registration of a charitable institution during reopening. The Tribunal's stance was supported by the Surat City Gymkhana case. The court found no errors in the reopening process and dismissed all appeals without costs, as the revenue's counsel acknowledged the reasonableness of the Tribunal's view.

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Issues involved: Interpretation of registration for charitable institution u/s assessing officer's authority to reopen.

Interpretation of registration for charitable institution: The Tribunal's view that once registration is granted to a charitable institution, the assessing officer cannot take a contrary view during reopening was upheld. The Tribunal's observation in para 10.2 of the order was deemed correct, emphasizing that the inferior authority cannot go against the registration status. The judgment of the Tribunal in Surat City Gymkhana case, affirmed by the Supreme Court, was cited to support this stance.

Assessing officer's authority to reopen: The Court found no fault with the findings of fact recorded during the reopening process. The learned counsel for the revenue acknowledged the reasonableness of the Tribunal's view and the absence of any substantial question of law in the appeals. Consequently, all appeals were dismissed without costs.

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