Section 27 in The Kerala Agricultural Income Tax Act, 1991
27. Powers for discovery, production of evidence etc.
(1)The Agricultural Income tax Officer, the Deputy Commissioner (Appeals), the Inspecting Assistant Commissioner, the Deputy Commissioner, the Commissioner and the Appellate Tribunal shall, for the purposes of this Act, have the same powers as are vested in a Court under the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (Central Act V of 1908) when trying the suit in respect of the following matters, namely:-(a)discovery and inspection,(b)enforcing the attendance of any person including any officer of a banking company and examining him on oath,(c)compelling the production of books of accounts and other documents,(d)issuing commission.(2)Subject to any rules made in this behalf, any authority referred to in sub-section (1) may impound and retain in its custody for such period, as it thinks fit, any books of accounts or other documents produced before it in any proceeding under this Act:Provided that such authority shall not impound any books of accounts or other documents without recording its reasons for so doing:Provided further that the Agricultural Income tax Officer shall not retain in his custody any such books of accounts for a period exceeding one hundred and eighty days and with the approval of the next superior authority, this period may be extended upto one month after the assessment for the year, to which such books of accounts or documents relate:Provided further that the person from whom such accounts or documents are impounded is entitled to an attested copy of such accounts or documents on application.
