Non-Faceless 148 Notice Rule of Law Prevails: JAO-Issued U/s 148 Notice Post-Scheme Declared Void

Sundarraj Sujatha Vs ITO (ITAT Chennai) Assessee challenged reopening for AY 2015-16 solely on the legal ground that notice u/s 148 dated 08.04.2022 was issued by JAO even though CBDT had already notified the Faceless Reassessment Scheme on 29.03.2022 pursuant to Sec.151A mandating that notices u/s 148A(b), 148A(d) & 148 must be issued only through automated faceless allocation. Tribunal found that the impugned notice was issued physically by JAO, not by NFAC, & therefore contravened the statutory scheme & violated Rule of Law. Tribunal noted that jurisdictional Madras High Court (...