TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2021 (11) TMI 56
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.... passed by the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (hereinafter referred to as 'ITAT') under Section 234E of Income Tax Act, 1961 (hereinafter referred to as 'the Act'). It is not in dispute that an appeal against an order passed by ITAT under Section 234E of the said Act is maintainable under Section 260 A of the act. In spite of the availability of the statutory remedy of appeal, the Revenue has filed the present petitions invoking Article 226 of the Constitution of India contending that the tax effect involved is below monetary limits as prescribed in Central Board of Direct Taxes (hereinafter referred to as 'CBDT') Circular No.17 of 2019 dated 8th August 2019 and the issue involved in the interpretation of Section has a cascading effect. 3....
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....a vires, or (c) Where Revenue Audit objection in the case has been accepted by the Department, or (d) Where the addition relates to undisclosed foreign income / undisclosed foreign assets (including financial assets) / undisclosed foreign bank account. (e) Where addition is based on information received from external sources in the nature of law enforcement agencies such as CBI / ED / DRI / SFIO / Directorate General of GST Intelligence (DGGI). (f) Cases where prosecution has been filed by the Department and is pending in the Court." 5. It is undisputed that the subject-matter of present writ petitions does not fall within any criterion prescribed in clause 10 of Circular No.3 of 2018 as amended by Cir....
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....e by the order passed by the three-Judge Bench of this Court in Surya Herbal Ltd. case, which had put two caveats even to the retrospective application of the Circular. The subsequent orders have been passed by the two-Judge Bench without those orders being brought to the notice of the Court, a duty which was cast on the Department to have done so to avoid the ambiguity which has arisen. Thus, the said view of the three-Judge Bench would hold water and the Circular would apply even to pending matters but subject to the two caveats provided in Surya Herbal Ltd. case." 7. At this stage, it is necessary to quote para 7 of Circular No.3 of 2018 which reads as under : "7. In a case where appeal before a Tribunal or a Court is not fil....
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....e Constitution of India is designated to effectuate the law, to enforce the rule of law and to ensure that the authorities and organs of the State act in accordance with law. The said power cannot be invoked for directing the statutory authority to act contrary to law. 11. The powers conferred under Section 268A(4) of the Income Tax Act to issue directions appears to be conferred with an intention to reduce the burden on the Courts and Tribunal in respect of matters where tax effect is less than the limits prescribed. The Income Tax authorities who are creatures of the Income Tax Act, are bound by the directions by the CBDT in exercise of power under Section 268A(4). Even before issuing such instructions, the CBDT has been issuing such i....
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.... Court is where an effective alternate remedy is available to the aggrieved person; (iii) Exceptions to the rule of alternate remedy arise where (a) the writ petition has been filed for the enforcement of a fundamental right protected by Part III of the Constitution; (b) there has been a violation of the principles of natural justice; (c) the order or proceedings are wholly without jurisdiction; or (d) the vires of a legislation is challenged; (iv) An alternate remedy by itself does not divest the High Court of its powers under Article 226 of the Constitution in an appropriate case though ordinarily, a writ petition should not be entertained when an efficacious alternate remedy is provid....