Saif Ali Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi Vs CIT(A) (ITAT Mumbai)
The Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT), Mumbai, has allowed the appeal filed by Bollywood actor Saif Ali Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi, quashing the entire reassessment proceedings for the Assessment Year (A.Y.) 2016-17 on legal grounds. The Tribunal held that the Assessing Officer (AO) had failed to obtain the mandatory higher-level approval required for reopening an assessment after the stipulated three-year period, rendering the subsequent notice and assessment order void ab initio.
Background of the Case
The case involved the reassessment of Mr. Pataudi’s income for A.Y. 2016-17. The AO initiated the reopening process by issuing a notice under Section 148 of the Income Tax Act on August 24, 2022. This date was more than three years after the end of the relevant assessment year (March 31, 2017).
The AO’s action was based on information, allegedly concerning a disallowance of a TDS credit of ₹50 lakhs, which the AO sought to treat as income that had escaped assessment. During the reassessment, the AO completed the assessment, and the resultant addition was upheld by the Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeals) [CIT(A)/NFAC], leading the assessee to approach the ITAT.
The assessee raised multiple legal and jurisdictional challenges before the ITAT, with the core submission focusing on the validity of the Section 148 notice and the approval process.
