Makemytrip India Private Limited Vs DCIT Circle 16 (1) Delhi & Anr. (Delhi High Court)
The Delhi High Court delivered a favorable verdict to Make My Trip India Private Limited, setting aside a reassessment notice issued by the Deputy Commissioner of Income Tax (DCIT) Circle 16(1) Delhi for the Assessment Year (AY) 2015-16. The court’s decision, based on the petition filed by Make My Trip, quashed the notice dated July 27, 2022, issued under Section 148 of the Income Tax Act, 1961, along with the preceding notice under Section 148A(b) dated May 19, 2022, and the order under Section 148A(d) dated July 27, 2022. The primary contention of Make My Trip was that the reassessment notice was barred by the statutory limitation period. The company had initially filed its income tax return for AY 2015-16 on November 28, 2015, and an assessment order under Section 143(3) was passed on December 29, 2018, following an Advance Pricing Agreement. This assessment order was later set aside by the Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeals) on June 24, 2019. Subsequently, a notice for reopening the assessment under the old Section 148 was issued on April 21, 2021.
The case’s trajectory was significantly influenced by the Supreme Court’s directives in Union of India & Others v. Ashish Agarwal, which mandated treating notices issued under the old Section 148 after March 31, 2021, as notices under the new Section 148A(b). Crucially, in a subsequent Supreme Court decision, Union of India and Others v. Rajeev Bansal, the Revenue conceded that the Taxation and Other Laws (Relaxation and Amendment of Certain Provisions) Act, 2020 (TOLA), was not applicable for reopening assessments for AY 2015-16. This concession was based on the fact that the period for completing reassessments for AY 2015-16 under TOLA had expired. Following this concession, the Delhi High Court, citing its earlier decision in Ibibo Group Private Limited v Assistant Commissioner of Income Tax Circle 10-1, & Anr., which involved a similar issue for the same assessment year, ruled in favor of Make My Trip. The court noted that the impugned notice dated July 27, 2022, was issued beyond the limitation period prescribed under Section 149(1) of the Act, and with the Revenue’s concession on the inapplicability of TOLA, the notice could not be sustained. The Supreme Court’s dismissal of a Special Leave Petition in The Income Tax Officer Ward 1(2) Jaipur v R.K. Build Creations Pvt Ltd, arising from a similar decision by the Rajasthan High Court based on the Rajeev Bansal ruling, further solidified this position. Consequently, the Delhi High Court allowed Make My Trip’s petition, quashing the reassessment notice and all proceedings originating from it.
