The Kerala High Court upheld the search and seizure carried out under Section 132 of the Income Tax Act, 1961, against a CPI(M) office bearer in connection with election expenditure monitoring.
The Court dismissed a writ petition challenging the search and seizure proceedings initiated by the Income Tax Department against the petitioner, an office bearer of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) [CPI(M)]. The proceedings arose from a cash withdrawal of ₹1 crore from a bank account maintained by the CPI(M) District Committee, Thrissur, which prompted the Department to conduct the search under the provisions of the Income Tax Act.
The Single Bench of Justice Bechu Kurian Thomas observed, “Invocation of the power under section 132 of the Act is a drastic step and is resorted to when money, income or assets are hidden or are not disclosed to the income tax department. In the instant case, the specific stand of the department is that the account in question maintained by the CPI(M) at the Bank of India, Thrissur, had not been linked with the PAN.”
“There were thus materials available with the respondents to prima facie assume that petitioner is in possession of money, which has not been disclosed to the income tax department. Hence, the satisfaction arrived at by the respondents to initiate a search and seizure under section 132 of the Act cannot be held to be perverse or legally untenable. Considering the scope of interference under Article 226 of the Constitution of India with a proceeding under section 132 of the Act, this Court is of the view that the search and seizure proceedings initiated by the respondents do not warrant any interference at this juncture.” the Court stated.
The High Court rejected the petition, emphasizing that the satisfaction notes and approval order for the search and seizure were well-documented. The approval was granted after carefully outlining reasons, in compliance with the principles set by the Supreme Court. The Court found no grounds to challenge the validity of the search and seizure process.
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