(1.) A statement of the case has been submitted by the Income-tax Appellate Tribunal, "B", Bench, Patna, under Section 256(1) of the Income-tax Act, 1961, referring the following question of law for the opinion of this court :
(2.) THE relevant facts of the case may be culled out from the statement of the case as well as other annexures in the case. THE assessment year involved in this case is 1967-68 for which the relevant accounting period is April 1, 1966, to March 31, 1967, i.e., the financial year. THE firm was constituted by a deed of partnership dated April 1, 1966, with four partners, namely, Dinanath Bhatia and his three sons, Ved Prakash Bhatia, Tilakraj Bhatia and Krishna Gopal Bhatia, having 1/4th share each.
(3.) THE Income-tax Officer also considered the application dated March 30, 1967, in Form No. 11. This Form No. 11 was signed by Dinanath Bhatia and his three sons showing 1/4th share each. He has also pointed out that since a change in the constitution of the firm had taken place after the death of one of its partners and the firm was reconstituted, the firm should have filed an application in Form No. 11A. THE Income-tax Officer also took the view that an application for registration has been filed in Form No. 11 on March 30, 1967, but before the application, a change has taken place in its constitution and so the application should have been filed on behalf of the firm of three partners as existing at the time of making the application but the application was filed by the assessee in respect of the firm of four partners which was not in existence at the time of making the assessment or even at the time of filing the application and so he held that the application in Form No. 11 cannot be acted upon. He has also held that the application in Form No. 11A was filed on behalf of the three partners on August 4, 1969, which was beyond the statutory time allowed for filing the application and the assessee was not able to give any satisfactory explanation for this inordinate delay. He, therefore, declined to entertain the application for registration which was filed in Form No. 11A on August 4, 1969, and so the Income-tax Officer for the second time again refused registration to the assessee-firm. THE second order of the Income-tax Officer has been annexed and marked as annexure D forming part of the statement of the case.