Section 260A appeal not maintainable against a Tribunal order passed only to implement a High Court reference direction.

An appeal under Section 260A of the Income-tax Act did not lie against a Tribunal order passed merely to implement a High Court direction under Section 256(2). Such a consequential order was made in the Court's advisory reference jurisdiction, not in the Tribunal's appellate jurisdiction, and therefore could not be treated as an appellate order for Section 260A purposes. Any grievance about non-compliance with the High Court's reference direction had to be addressed within the reference proceedings, not through the appellate remedy under Section 260A. The appeal was held not maintainable and dismissed.

---

---

Issues: Whether an appeal under Section 260A of the Income-tax Act, 1961 lay against an order of the Tribunal passed consequential to a High Court order under Section 256(2) of the Act, and whether such an order could be treated as an appellate order of the Tribunal.

Analysis: The order impugned before the Court was not passed by the Tribunal in exercise of its appellate jurisdiction. It was made only to give effect to the High Court's earlier direction under Section 256(2), which operates in the Court's advisory jurisdiction. An order passed in such a reference process is not an order of the Appellate Tribunal for the purposes of Section 260A. Any grievance arising from non-compliance with the High Court's direction in the reference proceedings could not be pursued by invoking the appellate remedy under Section 260A.

Conclusion: The appeal was not maintainable under Section 260A and was dismissed.

---