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CMA Final · Direct Tax Laws and International Taxation · Survey, Search and Seizure

During a search under section 247 of the Income-tax Act, 2025, the authorised officer finds that a heavy industrial machine of a Pune firm cannot practicably be moved to a safe place because of its weight. Which action is permitted by the Act?

The authorised officer may serve an order on the person in immediate possession not to remove, part with or deal with the machine without permission. Because physical removal is impracticable due to its weight, this order is deemed to be a seizure of the article.

  1. AServe an order on the person in immediate possession not to remove or part with it without permission, and this is deemed to be a seizureCorrect
  2. BServe a prohibitory order that is valid only for sixty days and is not deemed to be a seizure
  3. CIgnore the machine, because no valuable article can be dealt with unless it is physically removed
  4. DSeek a court order before any restraint can be placed on the machine

Explanation

Under section 247(4)(a), where physical possession and removal to a safe place is not possible due to volume, weight or other physical characteristics, the officer may serve a restraint order, and that action is deemed to be seizure under sub-section (1)(vii). The sixty-day non-seizure order belongs to clause (b), which applies for other reasons.

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