Automatic transfer of income-tax case carried Excess Profits Tax jurisdiction to the transferee officer.

A notification under the Excess Profits Tax Act attached Excess Profits Tax jurisdiction to the Income-tax Officer who was for the time being exercising income-tax functions in the relevant case. A valid transfer of the assessee's income-tax case to another officer therefore automatically carried the corresponding Excess Profits Tax jurisdiction with it, without any fresh special order. The prior completion of the income-tax assessment did not make the officer functus officio, because the statute still allowed further action in the same case. The assessment was accordingly upheld and the jurisdiction of the transferee officer was sustained.

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Issues: Whether the Income-tax Officer to whom the assessee's case was validly assigned acquired jurisdiction, by virtue of the 14-9-1940 notification under the Excess Profits Tax Act, to make the Excess Profits Tax assessment.

Analysis: The notification appointed every Income-tax Officer as an Excess Profits Tax Officer and attached to each such officer all cases in which he was for the time being exercising the functions of an Income-tax Officer. The making of an income-tax assessment did not render the officer functus officio, because the Income-tax Act still enabled him to exercise further statutory powers in the same case. Once the assessee's income-tax case was lawfully transferred to the Central Circle officer under the power of transfer, that officer was thereafter exercising the functions of an Income-tax Officer in relation to that case. The notification therefore operated automatically, without any fresh special order, to confer Excess Profits Tax jurisdiction on the officer who had acquired the income-tax case.

Conclusion: The jurisdiction of the officer who made the Excess Profits Tax assessment was valid, and the reference was answered in the affirmative, against the assessee and in favour of the Revenue.

Final Conclusion: The assessment was upheld on the footing that transfer of the income-tax case carried with it Excess Profits Tax jurisdiction under the notification, and the Tribunal's view was sustained.

Ratio Decidendi: Where a notification links Excess Profits Tax jurisdiction to the officer who is for the time being exercising income-tax functions in the case, a valid transfer of the income-tax case automatically confers the corresponding Excess Profits Tax jurisdiction on the transferee officer.

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