3. Tax authorities
1[(1) The income-tax authorities specified in section 116 of the Income-tax Act shall be the interest-tax authorities for the purposes of this Act.
(1A) Every such authority shall exercise the powers and perform the functions of an interest-tax authority under this Act in respect of any person within his jurisdiction.
(1B) The jurisdiction of an interest-tax authority under this Act shall be the same as he has under the Income-tax Act by virtue of orders or directions issued under section 120 of that Act (including orders or directions assigning the concurrent jurisdiction) or under any other provision of that Act.
(1C) The interest-tax authority having jurisdiction in relation to a credit institution which has no income assessable to income-tax under the Income-tax Act shall be the interest-tax authority having jurisdiction in respect of the area in which that institution carries on its business or has its principal place of business.
(1D) Section 118 of the Income-tax Act and any notification issued thereunder shall apply in relation to the control of interest-tax authorities as they apply in relation to the control of the corresponding income-tax authorities, except to the extent to which the Board may, by notification in the Official Gazette, otherwise direct in respect of any interest-tax authority.]
(2) All officers and persons employed in the execution of this Act shall observe and follow the orders, instructions and directions of the Board :
Provided that no such orders, instructions or directions shall be issued—
(a) so as to require any tax authority to make a particular assessment or to dispose of a particular case in a particular manner; or
(b) so as to interfere with the discretion of the 2[Commissioner (Appeals)] in the exercise of his appellate functions.
(3) Every Income-tax Officer 3[or Assistant Commissioner] 4[or Deputy Commissioner] employed in the execution of this Act shall observe and follow the orders, instructions and directions issued for his guidance by the 5[Director] or by the Commissioner or by the 6[Additional Commissioner of Income-tax or the 7[Joint Commissioner]] within whose jurisdiction he performs his functions.
——————–
1. Substituted for sub-section (1) by the Finance (No. 2) Act, 1991, w.e.f. 1-10-1991. Prior to substitution, sub-section (1), as amended by the Finance (No. 2) Act, 1977, w.e.f. 10-7-1978, read as under :
“(1) Every Director of Inspection, Commissioner of Income-tax, Commissioner of Income-tax (Appeals), Additional Commissioner of Income-tax, Inspecting Assistant Commissioner of Income-tax, Income-tax Officer and Inspector of Income-tax, shall have the like powers and perform the like functions, under this Act, as he has and performs under the Income-tax Act, and for the exercise of his powers and the performance of his functions, his jurisdiction under this Act shall be the same as he has under the Income-tax Act.”
2. Substituted for “Appellate Assistant Commissioner” by the Finance (No. 2) Act, 1977, w.e.f. 10-7-1978.
3. Inserted by the Finance Act, 1994, w.e.f. 1-6-1994.
4. Inserted by the Finance (No. 2) Act, 1998, w.e.f. 1-10-1998.
5. Substituted for “Director of Inspection”, by the Finance Act, 1994 w.e.f. 1-6-1994.
6. Substituted for “Inspecting Assistant Commissioner”, by the Finance Act, 1994, w.e.f. 1-6-1994.
7. Substituted for “Deputy Commissioner” by the Finance (No. 2) Act, 1998, w.e.f. 1-10-1998.
