Refund entitlement review where aged records impede adjudication - remit to Commissioner-level inquiry for reasoned refund determination.

Petitioner sought refund under an ITAT order; court found direct writ adjudication impracticable due to aged and missing records. The court applied the principle that fact-sensitive tax entitlement disputes requiring reconstruction of historical records should be referred to a tax authority empowered to call for documents and conduct hearings. Outcome: matter remitted to the Principal Chief Commissioner of Income Tax, West Bengal & Sikkim, to nominate a Commissioner-level officer to enquire, hear the petitioner, and pass a reasoned order determining the refund claim in accordance with law within the directed timeframe.

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Issues: Whether the petitioner is entitled to a refund in terms of the Income-tax Appellate Tribunal order as modified, and whether the matter should be remitted to the Principal Chief Commissioner of Income Tax for determination in view of missing/aged records.

Analysis: The petitioner seeks refund founded on a Tribunal order which was the subject of a reference to this Court but which was ultimately not proceeded with. The record indicates that both parties lack certain historical documents due to the passage of decades. Given the evidentiary lacuna and the practical difficulty in final adjudication on the existing record, a direct adjudication by the writ court is impracticable. A fact-sensitive enquiry by a competent tax authority of the rank of Commissioner or above, empowered to call for available records, receive the petitioner's submissions, and decide in accordance with law, is an appropriate mechanism to determine entitlement to refund.

Conclusion: The matter is remitted to the Principal Chief Commissioner of Income Tax, West Bengal & Sikkim, to nominate a Commissioner-level officer who shall enquire, hear the petitioner, and pass a reasoned order determining the refund claim in accordance with law within the directed timeframe.

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