All India Kataria Education Society Vs ACIT (Delhi High Court)
The Delhi High Court has affirmed that a Jurisdictional Assessing Officer (JAO) has the authority to initiate reassessment proceedings under the Income Tax Act, 1961, despite the advent of the Faceless Reassessment Scheme. In a judgment concerning the case of All India Kataria Education Society vs ACIT, the court dismissed a petition challenging a reassessment notice, stating that the issue of jurisdiction has been settled by previous judicial pronouncements within its own jurisdiction. The court’s decision supports the view that there is a concurrent jurisdiction between the traditional JAO and the Faceless Assessing Officer (FAO) for the purpose of initiating reassessment proceedings.
The petition was filed by All India Kataria Education Society against a notice issued under Section 148 of the Act, which enables tax authorities to initiate reassessment if they have reason to believe that income has escaped assessment. The petitioner’s primary argument was that, following the introduction of the Faceless Reassessment Scheme, only an FAO was competent to issue such a notice, and the action by the JAO was therefore illegal and without jurisdiction. This argument is a common point of contention since the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) introduced a faceless framework for various income tax proceedings.
