1989 (1) TMI 32 - HC - Income Tax

High Court rules interest not chargeable pre-1985 on enhanced tax liability.

The High Court ruled in favor of the assessee, holding that interest was not chargeable on the enhanced tax liability under sections 154/155 before April ... Interest Issues: Assessment of interest under section 154/155 of the Income-tax Act for enhanced tax liability.Analysis:The judgment delivered by Gokal Chand Mital J. pertained to a case involving a partnership firm, where one of the partners, the assessee, had paid advance tax exceeding the tax liability for the assessment years 1971-72 and 1972-73. Subsequently, the Income-tax Officer recalculated the income of the assessee under section 154, along with section 155 of the Income-tax Act, resulting in a higher tax liability and the imposition of interest on the enhanced amount. The Appellate Tribunal set aside the orders of the lower authorities, stating that charging interest under section 215/217 by invoking section 154/155 was not justified.The Tribunal referred two questions to the High Court for the assessment years 1971-72 and 1972-73. The first question queried the correctness of setting aside the order imposing interest under section 154/155 for the assessment year 1971-72. The second question was similar for the assessment year 1972-73, with a higher interest amount involved. The High Court, in line with a previous decision, held that interest was not chargeable on the enhanced tax liability under section 154/155 before April 1, 1985, as the provision only allowed interest on the amount refundable to the assessee.The High Court ruled in favor of the assessee, affirming the Tribunal's decision to set aside the interest charged by the Income-tax Officer under section 215 for both assessment years. Additionally, the court clarified that section 217(lA) was not applicable to the case, as it pertained to regular assessments and not subsequent orders under section 154/155. The judgment emphasized the absence of provisions allowing interest on enhanced tax liability before April 1, 1985, highlighting the change in the law post that date for interest calculations.