Jurisdiction and Powers of the Settlement Commission :
(a) The jurisdiction, powers and authority of the Settlement Commission may be exercised by benches thereof.
(b) A bench shall be presided over by the Chairman or a Vice-chairman and shall consist of two other members.
(c) The bench for which the Chairman is the presiding officer shall be the principal bench and the other benches shall be known as additional benches.
(d) The Chairman may authorise the Vice-chairman or other Member appointed to one bench to discharge also the functions of the Vice-chairman or other member of another bench.
(e) Where the presiding officer or other member of a bench is unable to discharge his functions owing to absence, illness or any other cause or where a vacancy occurs in the office of the presiding officer or a member the remaining two persons may function as the bench and if the presiding officer is not one of the members, the senior member will be the presiding officer. However, if it is felt that the case is such that it should he heard by a bench of three members the chairman has powers to transfer the case to such a bench. The chairman for the disposal of a particular case, institute a Special Bench consisting of more than three members.
(f) The places at which the Principal Bench and the Additional Benches shall ordinarily sit shall be notified by the Central Government. The Central Government has specified that New Delhi is the place where the Principal Bench and Bombay, Calcutta and Madras as the places where Additional Benches of the Settlement Commission shall ordinarily sit.
(g) The Vice-chairman has been empowered to act as chairman and discharge his functions under certain circumstances as vacancy, death, resignation etc.
(h) On the application of the assessee or the Principal Commissioner or Commissioner and after notice to them and hearing, the chairman may transfer any case pending before one bench, for disposal, to another bench.
(i) If the members of a bench differ in opinion on any point the point shall be decided according to the opinion of the majority. If they are equally divided they shall state the point on which they differ and make a reference to the chairman who shall either hear the point himself or refer the point to one or more of the other members and such point shall be decided according to the opinion of the majority of the members who have heard the case including those who first heard it.
(j) The Settlement Commission has been vested with all the powers which are vested in an Income-tax authority under the Income-tax Act, 1961.
(k) Accordingly, in cases where an application made by the assessee under section 245C has been allowed by the Settlement Commission to be proceeded with under section 245D, the Settlement Commission is empowered to exercise exclusively the jurisdiction and powers and perform the functions allotted to an Income-tax authority under the Income-tax Act until an order for settlement of the case is passed.
(l) Such exclusive jurisdiction would begin with the date of filing of application with the Settlement Commission.
(m) The exclusive jurisdiction of the Settlement Commission would end on –
(a) the date of passing an order under section 245D(4); or
(b) the date of passing the order rejecting the application under section 245D(1); or
(c) the date on which the application is not allowed to be proceeded with under section 245D(2A); or
(d) the date on which the application is declared invalid under section 245D(2C); or
(n) However, in the absence of any express direction to the contrary by the Settlement Commission, the operation of any other provision of the Income-tax Act, 1961 requiring the applicant to pay the tax on the basis of self-assessment shall continue to be applicable in relation to matters which are before the Settlement Commission for consideration. Further, in the absence of any express directions by the Settlement Commission to the contrary, the provisions of sections 245A to 245L would not affect the operation of any other provision of the Income-tax Act, 1961 insofar as those provisions relate to any matters other than those covered by the case before the Settlement Commission.
(o) The Commission shall subject to the provisions of this Chapter have power to regulate its own procedure and the procedure of benches thereof in all matters arising out of the exercise of its powers or of the discharge of its functions including the places at which the Board shall hold their sittings.
(p) Inspection of reports: According to section 245G, no person is entitled to inspect or obtain copies of any reports made by any Income-tax authority to the Settlement Commission in relation to the case, but, the Settlement Commission may, in its discretion, furnish copies thereof to any person or receipt of an application made to it in this behalf and on payment of the prescribed fee. However, in order to enable any person whose case is under consideration to rebut any evidence which has been brought on record against him in any such report, the Settlement Commission shall, on receipt of an application in this behalf and on payment of the prescribed fee, furnish to the applicant, a certified copy of any such report or particular thereof which may be relevant for the purpose.