Anup Agarwal Vs ACIT (Rajasthan High Court)
Notices under section 148A of Income Tax are time barred for Assessment year (A.Y.) 2017-18, Rajasthan High Court Stays the operation of the Notice.
Section 149 of the Income Tax Act states as under:-
Section 149: Time limit for notice
1) No notice under section 148 shall be issued for the relevant assessment year,-
(a) if three years have elapsed from the end of the relevant assessment year, unless the case falls under clause (b);
(b) if three years, but not more than ten years, have elapsed from the end of the relevant assessment year unless the Assessing Officer has in his possession books of accounts or other documents or evidence which reveal that the income chargeable to tax, represented in the form of asset, which has escaped assessment amounts to or is likely to amount to fifty lakh rupees or more for that year:
Thus, after the amendment in Section 149 of the Act of 1961, the time limit for issuance of Notice under Section 148 of the Act of 1961 till Assessment Year 2017-2018, was restricted to 31/03/2021 and thereafter, no notice under Section 148 A could be issued by the Income Tax Department unless the Assessing Officer has in his possession books of account or other documents or evidence which reveal that the income chargeable to tax, represented in the form of asset, which has escaped assessment amounts to or is likely to amount to fifty lakh rupees or more for that year.
Assessee Anup Agarwal together with his counsel Mr. Vijay Choudhary approached Rajasthan High Court, Jaipur Bench by way of writ petition bearing no. 12735/2022 and submitted that impugned notice dated 30/07/2022 issued under Section 148 A (d) of the Act is void-ab-initio, as it has been issued after the expiry of 3 years from the relevant financial year and same is also below 50 lakhs. Hence, issuance of impugned Notice dated 30.07.2022 becomes grossly impermissible in the aforesaid light. Therefore also, such action on part of respondent becomes liable to be declared illegal and bad in the eye of law.
Hon’ble Rajasthan High Court vide order dated 31.08.2022 granted the stay in favour of petitioner and observed as under:-
Heard.
Issue notice to the respondents to show cause as to why petition be not disposed off at the motion stage itself, on payment of P.F. by tomorrow in view of the submission that reopening is barred under Section 149(1)(b) of the I.T. Act as the reopening is in respect of assessment year 2017-18 and even according to the respondents the income alleged to have escaped assessment is less than Rs.50 lacs.
Notice are made returnable within two weeks. List this case after two weeks.
In the meantime, the effect and operation of the impugned order shall remain stayed.
CBDT instructions are mechanical and without any logic. Hon’ble Rajasthan High Court issued a show cause as to why petition be not disposed off at the motion stage itself.
Hence, Notices under section 148 for the assessment year 2017-18 are time barred if the amount of escapement is below 50 lakhs.
FULL TEXT OF THE JUDGMENT/ORDER OF RAJASTHAN HIGH COURT
Heard.
Issue notice to the respondents to show cause as to why petition be not disposed off at the motion stage itself, on payment of P.F. by tomorrow in view of the submission that reopening is barred under Section 149(1)(b) of the I.T. Act as the reopening is in respect of assessment year 2017-18 and even according to the respondents the income alleged to have escaped assessment is less than Rs.50 lacs.
Notice are made returnable within two weeks.
List this case after two weeks.
In the meantime, the effect and operation of the impugned order shall remain stayed.
