Pre-emptive purchase under tax law must follow the statutory scheme; speculative future contingencies cannot justify refusing to act.

Chapter XXC requires the Appropriate Authority to act strictly within the statutory pre-emptive purchase framework. It cannot treat Form No. 37-I as premature or invalid merely because of conjectural future contingencies under another statute when the transferor has a saleable title and the competent urban land authority has already granted the relevant permission or no-objection for construction. A later withdrawal possibility was held too vague to justify postponing action, and no implied or ancillary power exists to keep the matter in abeyance on prematurity grounds. The impugned refusal was unsustainable, and the matter had to be reconsidered in accordance with law.

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Issues: Whether the Appropriate Authority was justified in treating the Form No. 37-I statements as premature and invalid and in declining to proceed either to exercise the power of pre-emptive purchase or to grant a no-objection certificate.

Analysis: Chapter XXC of the Income-tax Act contemplates a restricted pre-emptive purchase scheme, and the Appropriate Authority must act within the statutory framework. The authority cannot refuse to act on the basis of conjectural future contingencies under another statute when the transferor has established a saleable title and the competent authority under the Urban Land (Ceiling and Regulation) Act has already granted the relevant permission/no-objection for the proposed construction. The possibility that such permission may later be withdrawn was held to be too vague and indefinite to justify postponing statutory action. The Court also held that no implied or ancillary power could be invoked to create a third course of keeping the matter in abeyance on the ground of prematurity.

Conclusion: The impugned orders treating the Form No. 37-I statements as premature and invalid were unsustainable; the petitioner succeeded and the Authority was required to consider the matter afresh in accordance with law and either proceed under section 269UD or issue a no-objection certificate.

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