Sanjib Banerjee, J. - (1.) The petitioning assessee complains of a stay petition filed before the appellate authority not being taken up and the Principal Commissioner not attending to an application arising out of Sec. 220 (6) of the Income Tax Act, 1961.
(2.) This apparently simple matter raises some issues of importance. For instance, would an administrative practice continuing for half a century permit a quasi -judicial authority function not conferred by statute to be exercised by a particular officer of the department? The petitioners refer to an authoritative judgment of this Court reported at : 37 ITR 267 and of the Supreme Court reported at : 71 ITR 815 to suggest that it is accepted that notwithstanding the administrative seniors of the assessing officer not being expressly conferred any authority under the statute to take up appeals or any revision from an order passed under Sec. 220(6) of the Act, it is usual practice that an order of the assessing officer under such provision is carried to the immediate superior joint Commissioner or additional Commissioner, as the case may be, and then to the Principal Commissioner and the like.
(3.) However, the appellate authority, generally a Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeals), is diffident in taking up an application for stay of any recovery proceedings pursuant to the impugned order of assessment notwithstanding the Supreme Court holding in the judgment referred to above that the power of an appellate authority to grant a stay of the order impugned inheres in such authority notwithstanding there being no express provision in such regard.;