Retrospective rectification limits prevent reopening a partner's final assessment based on a later firm reassessment.

Section 35(5) of the Income-tax Act, 1922 is described as a deeming provision allowing a partner's completed assessment to be adjusted where a later firm reassessment shows the partner's share was wrongly included. The text states that this provision, enacted in 1953, was not retrospective enough to disturb partner assessments that had already become final before 1 April 1952. It also notes that a mistake visible only from the firm's record is not a mistake apparent from the partner's completed assessment for rectification purposes. The stated effect is that such reopened assessments would lack jurisdiction.

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Issues: Whether section 35(5) of the Income-tax Act, 1922 could be invoked to reopen a partner's assessment that had already become final before 1 April 1952 on the basis of a later reassessment of the firm.

Analysis: Section 35(1) permits rectification only of a mistake apparent from the record within the prescribed period, and section 35(5) creates a deeming provision for a partner's completed assessment when the firm's assessment or reassessment later shows that the partner's share was not correctly included. The provision was enacted in 1953 and was held not to have a retrospective operation wide enough to disturb assessments of partners that had already been completed and attained finality before 1 April 1952. A mistake discovered only from the record of the firm is not a mistake apparent from the record of the partner's completed assessment for purposes of reopening that assessment under the deeming clause.

Conclusion: Section 35(5) could not be applied to reopen the petitioner's completed assessment, and the impugned reassessment was without jurisdiction.

Final Conclusion: The writ petition succeeded, and the enhanced assessment and the revisional order were quashed.

Ratio Decidendi: A deeming provision for rectification cannot be given retrospective effect so as to reopen a partner's assessment that became final before the statutory cut-off date, because it would impermissibly affect vested rights and is confined to the period and cases expressly covered by the statute.

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