Maintainability of section 256(2) application turned on strict compliance with court filing rules; postal submission was insufficient.

An application under section 256(2) of the Income-tax Act, 1961 had to be presented in court in the manner required by the applicable court rule. Because the application was sent by post instead of being filed before the court, it did not comply with the prescribed mode of presentation. The High Court therefore treated it as not entertainable and dismissed it as not maintainable for failure to follow the mandatory procedure.

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Issues: Whether an application under section 256(2) of the Income-tax Act, 1961 was maintainable when it was sent by post instead of being presented in court in accordance with the court rules.

Analysis: The application was required to be presented in court. Since it was sent by post, contrary to the applicable court rule, it did not satisfy the prescribed mode of presentation. On that ground, the application was held to be not entertainable.

Conclusion: The application was dismissed as not maintainable for non-compliance with the prescribed procedure.

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