Anup Kumar Lakhotia Vs Union of India through CBI
Forum-Jharkhand High Court
Date-23rd December,2021

Sub-Whether petitioner can be tried under the various section of Indian Penal Code and Prevention of Corruption Act in connection with the illegal transfer of PAN from Kolkata to Hazaribagh to get favourable order u/s 264 of Income-tax Act,1961 from PCIT Mr Tapas Kumar Dutta when the trial in the case of Mr Dutta is still going on ?

This is a classic case where the petitioner and Mr Bishwanath Agarwal, Mr Santosh Shah were alleged to have planned transfer of PAN from Kolkata to Hazaribagh for the companies that either did not exist on the given addresses or had taken the premises on rent for only three months and never functioned or had any business/office activity on the so-called changed addresses of Ranchi/Hazaribagh, to get favourable set aside orders u/s 264 of Income-tax Act,1961 against orders passed u/s 143(3) in Kolkata towards huge additions made towards share capital at a huge premium and upon raid at the residence of PCIT, various incriminating documents including cash of more than Rs 3.715 crores was found and seized.

The court noted that there is prima-facie material to show that in the criminal conspiracy Sri Tapas Kumar Dutta, Principal Commissioner of Income Tax, Ranchi, Sri Arvind Kumar, Additional Commissioner of Income Tax, Ranchi; Sri Ranjit Kumar Lal, I.T.O. (Tech), Ranchi; Sri Subir Kumar Ganguly, Officer, Income Tax Ranchi; many businessmen, chartered accountants and others were involved and it is not in dispute that investigation is still going on.

On these facts the court refused to interfere under Section 227 of CrPC on the basis of various decisions of Supreme Court of India, against the order of the trial court of CBI

Ramesh Patodia
24-12-2021