Amendment of pending revision petitions allowed where a later appellate decision made the revised contention necessary on merits.

Amendment of pending revision petitions should be allowed where a later final appellate decision changes the legal position and makes the revised contention necessary. The High Court noted that the revision petitions had been filed before the Tribunal decided the related appeal, and the amendment sought only after that later decision. Because the factual and legal position was identical to the earlier appeal, the amended ground was not a new dispute introduced for the first time but a contention that had become necessary to raise. The revision should therefore be considered on merits, in favour of the assessee.

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Issues: Whether the amendment of the revision petitions should have been allowed so that the assessee's contention could be considered on merits.

Analysis: The revision petitions had been filed long before the Tribunal decided the assessment-year appeal, and the amendment application was made only after that later decision. The factual and legal position in the revision petitions was identical to that in the earlier appeal, and the assessee's request to amend arose from the subsequent final decision of the Tribunal. In these circumstances, the amended ground was not a fresh point improperly introduced for the first time, but a contention that became necessary only after the later appellate decision.

Conclusion: The amendment ought to have been allowed and the revised contention ought to have been examined on merits, in favour of the assessee.

Ratio Decidendi: Where a later final appellate decision alters the position in pending revision proceedings, an amendment necessary to raise the resulting contention should be permitted and not rejected merely as a fresh dispute.

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