Mercy Chandira Vs ITO (ITAT Chennai)
ITAT Chennai quashed reassessment proceedings where notice u/s 148 & order u/s 148A(d) were issued by the Jurisdictional Assessing Officer (JAO) after 29.03.2022, contrary to the mandatory faceless procedure prescribed u/s 151A read with the e-Assessment of Income Scheme, 2022. Tribunal held that once the faceless scheme came into force, issuance of notice u/s 148 & allied proceedings had to be through the faceless mechanism & not by JAO. Following decisions of Telangana HC in Kankanala Ravindra Reddy, Bombay HC in Hexaware Technologies Ltd., jurisdictional Madras HC in TVS Credit Services Ltd. & subsequent confirmations including dismissal of Revenue’s SLP in Deepanjan Roy, ITAT held that non-adherence to faceless procedure vitiates the entire reopening. Consequently, notice u/s 148 & all consequential reassessment orders were set aside as void ab initio, while keeping liberty open to Revenue to seek revival if the Apex Court reverses the law subsequently. Appeal of assessee was allowed.
FULL TEXT OF THE ORDER OF ITAT CHENNAI
This appeal by the assessee is arising out of the order dated 06.08.2025, passed by the Learned Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeal), NFAC, Delhi (in short “ld.CIT(A)”) for the assessment year (A.Y) 2019-20 against the order u/s.147 r.w.s 144B of the Income Tax Act, 1961 (hereinafter the ‘Act’) passed by the Assessment Unit (AO), Income Tax department dated 18.07.2023.
