CBDT notifies Special Courts for Trial of Offences under Income Tax Act 1961 in Gujarat [Read Notification]

The Central Board of Direct Taxes ( CBDT ) has notified Special Courts for Trial of Offences under the Income Tax Act, 1961.

By the Virtue sub-section (1) of Section 280A of the Income Tax Act, 1961, the Central Government, in consultation with the Chief Justice of the High Court of Gujarat has designated thirty-five Courts in Gujarat State.

The sections dealing with offences and prosecution proceedings are included in Chapter XXII of the Income-tax Act, 1961 i.e. S. 275A to S. 280D of the Act. However, the provisions contained in said Chapter XXII of the Act do not inter se deal with the procedures regulating the prosecution itself, which is governed by the provisions of the Criminal Procedure Code, 1973.

The provisions of the said Code are to be followed relating to all offences under the Income Tax Act unless the contrary is specially provided for by the Act. An appropriate example would be S. 292A of the Act that prescribes that S. 360 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (Order to release on probation of good conduct or after admonition) and the Probation of Offenders Act, 1958, would not apply to a person convicted of an offence under the Income Tax Act, unless the accused is under eighteen of age.

The Finance Act, 2012, w.e.f. 1-7-2012 has inserted S. 280A to 280D, wherein the Central Government has been given the power to constitute Special Courts in consultation with the Chief Justices of the respective jurisdictional High Courts. Normally, the Magistrate Court in whose territorial jurisdiction an offence is committed tries the offence.

For direct tax cases, the offence is said to commit at the place where a false return of income is submitted, even though it is completely possible that the return has been prepared elsewhere or that accounts have been fabricated at some other place.

A First Class Magistrate or a Metropolitan Magistrate should try the prosecution case under the direct taxes. If a Special Economic Offences Court with specified jurisdiction is notified, the complaint is to be filed before the respective court.