https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=25254 Criminal prosecution under section 277 of the Income-tax Act could not be sustained against a company where the offence carried compulsory imprisonment and fine. The Court treated mens rea as an essential ingredient and held that, although the term "person" is wide enough to include a company, it cannot be applied so as to impose a sentence of imprisonment on a body corporate. The Court further noted that section 278B does not require prosecution of the company itself, and that responsible officers may still be proceeded against without prosecuting the company. The proceedings against the company were quashed. en-us Thu, 02 Jul 1987 00:00:00 +0530 Wed, 27 Jan 2010 15:28:40 +0530 TaxTMI RSS Generator https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=25254 Criminal prosecution under section 277 of the Income-tax Act could not be sustained against a company where the offence carried compulsory imprisonment and fine. The Court treated mens rea as an essential ingredient and held that, although the term "person" is wide enough to include a company, it cannot be applied so as to impose a sentence of imprisonment on a body corporate. The Court further noted that section 278B does not require prosecution of the company itself, and that responsible officers may still be proceeded against without prosecuting the company. The proceedings against the company were quashed. Case-Laws Income Tax Thu, 02 Jul 1987 00:00:00 +0530 https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=25254