Case: Societe Generale Vs. Commissioner of Income Tax and Others

The question that the Authority was called upon to answer, at the behest of the appellant, read thus (page 106) :"In the light of article 26 of the agreement for the avoidance of double taxation and prevention of fiscal evasion with respect to taxes on income and on capital entered into by the Government of the Republic of India and the Government of the French Republic, whether the applicant is chargeable to tax in respect of income earned from business, as computed under article 7 of the treaty from the assessment yearBefore the Authority the Revenue contended that the Authority did not have jurisdiction to decide the question in view of the fact that assessment proceedings in respect of the appellant relating to the assessment year7 were pending when the application before the Authority was filed, and attention was drawn to section 245R of the Act, the proviso whereof states that the Authority shall not allow an application where the question raised in it is already pending before an income tax authority or the Appellate Tribunal or any court. The Authority came to the conclusion that the appellant could not :The Authority was, therefore, of the view that the preliminary objection raised on behalf of the Revenue was "of some substance". However, the Authority did not dispose of the application on that preliminary ground and it went on to decide it. The decision went against the appellantThe same objection is raised before us on behalf of the Revenue. The objection has been argued for some time and now Mr. Dastur, learned counsel for the appellant, applies for leave to withdraw the application before the Authority. He submits that the issue regarding the rate of tax payable by the appellant for the assessment year7 and subsequent assessment years shall be raised by the appellant before the authorities and that, having regard to his withdrawal of the application itself, the order thereon should be set aside.

Reasoning: The appellant shall be at liberty to raise the issue of the rate at which it is liable to pay tax before the authorities, the Tribunal and the courts thereafter and they shall come to a decision thereon independently of and without reference to the impugned judgment of the Authority.