BASANT TUBEWELL STORE Vs. V P GARG ITO

JUDGEMENT

(1.) BY this common judgment both the abovesaid revision petitions can conveniently be disposed of together.

(2.) THE relevant facts are that Basant Tubewell Store, Sirsa, is a partnership concern. It had five partners, namely, Shanti Sarup Karopal, Krishan Kumar Sharma, Vinod Kumar Verma, Bal Kishan and Rajinder Kumar Karopal. The firm had business in the sale and purchase of iron, hardware and tubewell parts. The partners had filed the income-tax return. On July 10, 1981, action was taken under Section 133a of the Income-tax Act by the Income-tax Officer, on the business premises of the petitioners. During the course of action, one uchanti note book was recovered and found in the control and possession of the petitioners. It was impounded by the Income-tax Officer. On the verification of the books of account maintained by the petitioners with the uchanti note book, it was found that sales to the tune of Rs. 20,788 and purchases to a stock of Rs. 7,655 had been made by the petitioners from May 1, 1981, to July 8, 1981. The same were not entered in the books of account. At the time of the said action, the stocks of the petitioners were physically verified and checked. Their value was assessed at Rs. 1,29,558 while according to the account books, the value of the stock was only Rs. 1,13,250. In other words, it showed an excess stock of Rs. 16,308.

(3.) THE case of the prosecution was that the accused were under an obligation not to omit or cause to be omitted any relevant entry or statement in the books of account. They had wilfully attempted to evade the tax, penalty or interest chargeable under the Income-tax Act. By not making the entries of sale and purchase in their books of account, the accused were found to be in possession and control of books of account containing false entries. It was contended that they had committed the offence punishable under Sections 276c and 278 of the Income-tax Act.