Section 251 of Income Tax Act "Powers of the Commissioner (Appeals)"
251. (1) In disposing of an appeal, the Commissioner
(Appeals) shall have the following powers-
(a) in an appeal against an order of assessment, he may
confirm, reduce, enhance or annul the assessment;
(aa) in an appeal against the order of assessment in respect
of which the proceeding before the Settlement Commission
abates under section 245HA,he may, after taking into
consideration all the material and other information
produced by the assessee before, or the results of the
inquiry held or evidence recorded by, the Settlement
Commission, in the course of the proceeding before it and
such other material as may be brought on his record,
confirm, reduce, enhance or annul the assessment;
(b) in an appeal against an order imposing a penalty, he may
confirm or cancel such order or vary it so as either to
enhance or to reduce the penalty;
(c) in any other case, he may pass such orders in the appeal
as he thinks fit.
(2) The Commissioner (Appeals) shall not enhance an
assessment or a penalty or reduce the amount of refund
unless the appellant has had a reasonable opportunity of
showing cause against such enhancement or reduction.
Explanation.-In disposing of an appeal, the Commissioner
(Appeals) may consider and decide any matter arising out of
the proceedings in which the order appealed against was
passed, notwithstanding that such matter was not raised
before the Commissioner (Appeals) by the appellant.
252. (1) The Central Government shall constitute an
Appellate Tribunal consisting of as many judicial and
accountant members as it thinks fit to exercise the powers
and discharge the functions conferred on the Appellate
Tribunal by this Act.
(2) A judicial member shall be a person who has for at least
ten years held a judicial office in the territory of India
or who has been a member of the Indian Legal Service and has
held a post in Grade II of that Service or any equivalent or
higher post for at least three years or who has been an
advocate for at least ten years.
Explanation.-For the purposes of this sub-section,-
(i) in computing the period during which a person has held
judicial office in the territory of India, there shall be
included any period, after he has held any judicial office,
during which the person has been an advocate or has held the
office of a member of a Tribunal or any post, under the
Union or a State, requiring special knowledge of law;
(ii) in computing the period during which a person has been
an advocate, there shall be included any period during which
the person has held judicial office or the office of a
member of a Tribunal or any post, under the Union or a
State, requiring special knowledge of law after he became an
advocate.
(2A) An accountant member shall be a person who has for at
least ten years been in the practice of accountancy as a
chartered accountant under the Chartered Accountants Act,
1949 (38 of 1949), or as a registered accountant under any
law formerly in force or partly as a registered accountant
and partly as a chartered accountant, or who has been a
member of the Indian Income-tax Service, Group A and has
held the post of Additional Commissioner of Income-tax or
any equivalent or higher post for at least three years.
(3) The Central Government shall appoint-
(a) a person who is a sitting or retired Judge of a High
Court and who has completed not less than seven years of
service as a Judge in a High Court; or
(b) one of the Vice-Presidents of the Appellate Tribunal,
to be the President thereof.
(4) The Central Government may appoint one or more members
of the Appellate Tribunal to be the Vice-President or, as
the case may be, Vice-Presidents thereof.
(4A) [***]
(5) The Vice-President shall exercise such of the powers and
perform such of the functions of the President as may be
delegated to him by the President by a general or special
order in writing.