Govt tells court Jaya's case only to delay proceedings

Chennai, Aug 25 (UNI) The Centre today told Madras High Court that the action of Former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa and her close aide Sasikala in filing petitions challenging the Constitutional validity of Section 278 E of the Income Tax Act was only to delay the proceedings pending before the lower court in the IT cases against them.

This was stated in a counter affidavit filed before the court by Commissioner of Income Tax (Central-II) V K Pandey to the petitions filed by Ms Jayalalithaa and Ms Sasikala.

The petitioners filed the case after the Supreme Court had directed the framing of charges in the IT cases.

The petition will have direct consequences with the Apex Court's order, not being implemented under the guise of challenging the Constitutional validity of Section 278 E of the Act, which was in the statute book for more than 20 years, Mr Pandey said in the affidavit filed on behalf of the Centre and sought to dismiss the petitions.

When the department finds a person wilfully failing to furnish IT returns in due time under Section 276 CC of the IT Act, a prosecution has to be laid.

A rule of evidence had been prescribed in Section 278 E in aid of the prosecution on raising a statutory presumption as to culpable mental state of the accused.

This presumption was an exception carved out of general criminal jurisprudence under which the accused can raise doubts in the mind of the court on the correctness of the prosecution version.

But once the presumption of culpable state of mind was established under this section, it will be for the accused to produce material to prove otherwise, he added.

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