TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
1980 (1) TMI 62
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....re not voluntary. It appears that on 22nd November, 1973, the business promises of Messrs. Popular Transport Agency and Messrs. Gupta Service Station were searched by the I.T. department, and certain books were seized. Kartar Singh was a partner in those firms. Kartar Singh is one of the members of the petitioner-association of persons. The petitioner-association on 7th October, 1974, filed returns of income for the assessment years 1966-67, 1967-68, 1968-69, 1969-70, 1972-73 and 1973-74. Subsequently, on 25th March, 1975, a notice under s.148 of the I.T. Act was served on the petitioners. In due course, the ITO initiated penalty proceedings for delay in filing the return and for not filing the estimate of advance tax under ss. 271(1)(a) a....
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....luntary' in its primary sense means 'proceeding from one's own free will' or 'without compulsion'. In its secondary sense it implies 'without any legal obligation' or 'not prompted by fear or inducement' depending upon the context in which it is used. In the context in which the word 'voluntary' has been used it is not possible to take the view that it means without any legal obligation'. Section 139 places a legal obligation on all persons having taxable income to disclose their income in the prescribed form. If the word 'voluntary ' is interpreted to mean ' without legal obligation' no disclosure under section 271(4A) would be voluntary. This interpretation has, therefore, to be rejected. Therefore, in the context in which the word 'volun....
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....alty for late filing of the returns were initiated. The Commissioner refused to waive or reduce the penalty on the view that the returns were not filed voluntarily. The Gujarat High Court held that the word " voluntary " has to be read with the expression " made full disclosure of his net wealth ". The word " voluntary " has not to be read in the context of filing a return. This concept has been taken care of by providing that the assessee should have filed the return prior to the issue of notice. They then held that merely because the return has been filed under the advice, suggestion or even at the behest, otherwise than by a notice, it does not cease to be a voluntary return. In our view the case is distinguishable. In that case, there ....
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.... filed under the constraint of exposure to adverse action by the I.T. department, in our opinion, will not be voluntary within the meaning of s. 273A. The action of the petitioners in filing the returns after the books of account had been seized at a raid was impelled by the compelling circumstance that the petitioner was likely to be dealt with under the penal provisions of the I.T. Act. The action of the petitioner in filing the returns under such a constraint cannot be said to be voluntary. In Mool Chand Mahesh Chand v. CIT [1978] 115 ITR 1 (All), the ITO started investigation by asking for details in respect of several matters while conducting the assessment proceedings for the year 1969-70. Thereafter, the assessee filed returns for th....