Section 17. Power to transfer proceedings

(1) The Commissioner may, after due notice to the concerned parties and by order in writing, transfer any proceedings or class of proceedings under any provision of this Act from himself to any other officer and he may likewise transfer any such proceedings (including a proceeding already transferred under this section) from one such officer to another or to himself.

(2) The officer to whom any proceeding is transferred under subsection (1) shall proceed to dispose it of as if it had been initiated by himself.

(3) The transfer of proceedings shall not render necessary the reissue of any notice already issued before such transfer and the officer to whom the proceeding is transferred may continue it from the stage at which it was left by the officer from whom it was transferred.

Explanation.-- For the purposes of this section, "proceedings" in relation to any person whose name is specified in any order issued thereunder, means all proceedings under this Act in respect of any year which may be pending on the date of such order or which may have been completed on or before such date, and includes also such proceedings which may be commenced after the date of such order in respect of any year.