Ashok Gupta Vs DCIT (Rajasthan High Court)
The Rajasthan High Court disposed of a writ petition concerning the validity of reassessment proceedings initiated under Section 148 of the Income Tax Act, 1961, by a Jurisdictional Assessing Officer (JAO) instead of a Faceless Assessing Officer (FAO). The Court noted that the issue raised had already been conclusively decided by a Coordinate Bench in Sharda Devi Chhajer & Anr. v. Income Tax Officer & Anr. and connected matters decided on 19 March 2025.
In Sharda Devi Chhajer, the Coordinate Bench had held that notices issued under Sections 148 and 148A must conform to the statutory framework requiring automated allocation through algorithm-based random assignment. Referring to Part 2(i)(a) of the Scheme and Section 151A of the Act, the Court observed that assessment and reassessment proceedings must be conducted in accordance with the faceless regime introduced by the legislature. The Court emphasized that the objective behind the faceless system was to enhance transparency, impartiality, and efficiency through technological tools, including artificial intelligence and machine learning. It held that any attempt to retain manual control or bypass the technology-driven mechanism would defeat the legislative intent.
The Coordinate Bench had categorically ruled that Jurisdictional Assessing Officers do not possess the authority to issue notices under Sections 148 and 148A, as doing so would undermine the mandate of Section 151A. Consequently, such notices were held to be without jurisdiction and liable to be quashed. At the same time, liberty was granted to the Revenue to issue fresh notices in compliance with the CBDT Notification dated 29 March 2022 by designating the Faceless Assessing Officer as the assessing authority. The period spent in litigation was directed to be excluded while computing limitation for issuance of fresh notices, where necessary.
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