B.S.YADAV, J. - (1.) THIS order will dispose of the above titled Criminal Revision No. 1488 of 1980, Chanchal Singh v. R.S. Walia, as the law point involved in both the petitions is the same.
(2.) IN the present petition, the prosecution case, in brief, is that the present petitioner, Chanchal Singh was the principal officer of Messrs Hoshiarpur Express Transport Company Ltd., Hoshiarpur (for short the Company). The said Company paid dividends to its shareholders on various dates falling between 7.8.1967 to 20.11.1967. Th Company deducted at the source Rs. 1,540/- as income-tax from the dividend. The petitioner did not deposit the amount of income-tax so deducted and also did not file the relevant returns within the statutory period. He filed the return Ex. PB. It was signed by him as, its principal officer. Ex. PD is the copy of the assessment order dated 31.1.1970. In that order the Income Tax Officer ordered that the Company had declared dividend on the paid up capital and tax be charged accordingly. Vide order, copy of which is Ex. PE, dated 23.12.1970, the Income Tax Officer ordered that the Company was liable to pay simple interest on the amount of Rs. 1,540/- for the period it had with-held the income tax deducted at source upto the date on which it was actually paid and thus, a demand for Rs. 33/- was created against the Company under section 201(1-A) of the Income Tax Act, 1961 (for short the Act). On 30.3.1978 the present respondent, Shri R.S. Walia, Income Tax officer filed a complaint in the Court of the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Hoshiarpur. According to the complaint, the petitioner Company had committed a default by not discharging its legal obligations under section 194 of the Act read with Rules 30 and 37 of the Income Tax Rules, 1962 and section 286 of the Act read with Rule 117 of the said Rules and thus, committed an offence falling under section 276(b) and 276-B of the Act.
(3.) IN Criminal Revision No. 1487 of 1980, the case of the prosecution was that the Company had paid dividends to the share-holders on various dates from 15.8.1968 to 26.3.1969 and had deducted at the source Rs. 7,873/- as income tax, but failed to pay the said tax in the treasury within the prescribed period under the Act. In that case, the Company filed a return, copy of which is Ex. PB. It was signed by the petitioner as its Principal Officer. Ex. PD is a copy of the assessment order dated 28.2.1970 passed on the basis of that return. In that order, the Income Tax Officer ordered that the Company had declared dividends on the paid up capital and tax be charged accordingly. Ex. PE is the copy of the order dated December 23, 1970 passed by the Income Tax Officer, requiring the company to pay simple interest upon Rs. 7,873/- for the period the amount had been withheld and upto the date the amount was actually paid. Thus, a demand of Rs. 392/- was created. In that case also Shri R.S. Walia, Income Tax Officer filed a similar complaint, as to the one filed in the other case, on 30.3.1978.;