Bombay High Court
Yashvardhan Arunkumar Jatia vs The Income Tax Officer Ward 19 3 1 Mumbai on 18 December, 2023
Author: Neela Gokhale
Bench: K. R. Shriram, Neela Gokhale
2023:BHC-OS:15073-DB
1/3 422.WPL-13171-2023.doc
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY
ORDINARY ORIGINAL CIVIL JURISDICTION
WRIT PETITION (L) NO.13171 OF 2023
Yashvardhan Arunkumar Jatia ....Petitioner
V/s.
The Income Tax Officer, Ward 19(3)(1) & Ors. ....Respondents
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Mr. Rohan Deshpande i/b. Ms. Alisha Pinto for petitioner.
Mr. Siddharth Chandrashekhar for respondents - Revenue.
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CORAM : K. R. SHRIRAM &
DR. NEELA GOKHALE, JJ.
DATED : 18th DECEMBER 2023 P.C. :
1 Petitioner is impugning an order dated 31 st March 2023 under Section 148A(d) and notice dated 31st March 2023 under Section 148 of the Income Tax Act, 1961 (the Act) and reassessment proceedings for Assessment Year 2016-2017.
2 During the Financial Year 2015-2016 pertaining to Assessment Year 2016-2017, petitioner was a minor. A PAN number had been issued to petitioner. Since petitioner was a minor, any income accrued to petitioner was clubbed with the income of his father one Arunkumar Mahabirprasad Jatia, through whom this petition also is filed, and taxed accordingly. For Assessment Year 2016-2017 petitioner had been issued a notice under Section 148A(b) of the Act and information for the purposes of Sections 148/148A of the Act was also provided. Petitioner, through his father, filed a detailed reply including return of income alongwith supporting Gauri Gaekwad 2/3 422.WPL-13171-2023.doc documents.
3 After considering the objections filed, respondent no.2 was pleased to pass an order under Section 148A(d) of the Act dropping the reassessment proceedings for Assessment Year 2016-2017. This order of dropping the proceedings was passed after obtaining approval from the specified authority under Section 151 of the Act. Strangely, petitioner was served with a fresh notice under Section 148A(b) of the Act dated 18th March 2023 relying on the same information which was provided in the earlier dropped reassessment proceedings. Petitioner filed, through his father, a reply and objected to the reopening of the reassessment proceedings relying on the same "information". The objections of petitioner have not been considered and the impugned order dated 31 st March 2023 under Section 148A(d) of the Act was passed together with notice also dated 31st March 2023 under Section 148 of the Act. Petitioner, therefore, approached this Court by way of this petition.
4 In the affidavit in reply filed through one Gopal Ji Jha affirmed on 11th August 2023, though the petition has been opposed, in paragraph 6.6 in reply to paragraph 5(H) of the petition, the affiant states that due to lack of time and system related issues and oversight he was not aware about the order passed under Section 148A(d). Paragraph 5(H) of the petition reads as under :
5(H). It is further submitted that since Respondent No.2 was pleased to drop the reopening proceedings initiated u/s 148A of Gauri Gaekwad 3/3 422.WPL-13171-2023.doc the Act for the very same AY 2016-17 on substantive grounds (in context of the aforesaid objection - by way of a speaking order u/s 148A(d) dated 31 July 2022 accepting the objections raised by the Petitioner's father no further proceedings whatsoever could have been initiated by Respondent No.1 and the same are ex facie illegal and arbitrary. In fact, Respondent No.1 has even failed to scrutinise the case records duly available on the electronic portal of the Income-tax Department, which indicate that the proceedings were dropped by his predecessor. 5 Therefore, respondents have now admitted that on the same information earlier reopening notice was issued and those reopening proceedings have been dropped.
6 In the circumstances, the impugned order dated 31st March 2023 under Section 148A(d) of the Act cannot be sustained. The same is hereby quashed and set aside. Consequently, the impugned notice dated 31st March 2023 under Section 148 of the Act is also hereby quashed and set aside.
7 Petition disposed. No order as to costs.
(DR. NEELA GOKHALE, J.) (K. R. SHRIRAM, J.)
Signed by: Gauri A. Gaekwad
Gauri Gaekwad
Designation: PS To Honourable Judge
Date: 20/12/2023 19:01:25