Case Law Details
Sukhdev Singh Kang Vs ITO (ITAT Amritsar)
it is the claim of the ld A.R, that as the jurisdiction over the case of the assessee was undeniably vested with the Income Tax Officer, Nakodar, therefore, the Income Tax Officer, Ward-4, Phagwara who had no jurisdiction over his case had clearly traversed beyond his jurisdiction and wrongly reopened the case of the assessee u/s 147 of the Act. Supplementing his aforesaid contention, it was submitted by the ld. A.R, that as prior to reopening of the assessee’s case vide notice issued u/s 148 of the Act by the Income-Tax Officer, Ward-4, Phagwara the Income-Tax Officer, Nakodar who was vested with the jurisdiction over his case had over the period i.e 14.02.2012 to 11.08.2014 sought for information u/s 133(6) of the Act and otherwise qua the cash deposits figuring in the bank accounts of the assessee. It was submitted by the ld A.R that it was neither a fact nor the case of the department that subsequent to 11.08.2014 i.e. the date on which the last notice was issued by the Income-Tax Officer, Nakodar that the case of the assessee was transferred to the Income-Tax Officer, Ward-4, Phagwara, on the basis of which the department would had sought to justify the issuance of Notice u/s 148 by him. In the backdrop aforesaid facts, we fail to understand that as to on what basis the Income-Tax Officer, Ward-4, Phagwara had assumed jurisdiction over the case of the assessee and reopened the same u/s 147 of the Act, specifically when over the period i.e 14.02.2012 to 11.08.2014 the Income-Tax Officer, Nakodar who was vested with the territorial jurisdiction over the case of the assessee u/s 124(1) of the Act had by taking recourse to the powers that were vested with him u/s 133(6) of the Act, as well as necessary AIR verifications had been gathering the requisite information qua the cash deposits in the assessee’s bank accounts. On a perusal of the records, we find that the assessment had been framed by the Income Tax Officer, Nakodar vide his order passed u/ss. 143(3)/148, dated 26.12.2016 on the basis of the Notice issued u/s 148, dated 29.02.2016 and the “reasons to believe”, dated 14.12.2015 recorded by the ITO, Ward-4, Phagwara. Before adverting any further, we may herein observe, that as is discernible from the records, the Income-Tax Officer, Ward Nakodar prior to framing of the assessment vide order passed by him u/ss. 143(3)/148, dated 26.12.2016, had after receiving the case records merely proceeded with on the basis of the Notice u/s 148, dated 29.02.2016 that was issued by the Income-tax Officer, Ward-4, Phagwara. In our considered view, the invalid assumption of jurisdiction by the ld ITO, Ward-4, Phagwara u/s 147 of the Act could not have been validated by a simpliciter transfer of the assessee’s case to the Income-Tax Officer, Nakodar i.e the A.O who was vested with the requisite jurisdiction over the case of the assessee. Even if it is to be assumed that there was a transfer of jurisdiction over the case of the assessee from the Income-tax Officer, Ward-4, Phagwara to the Income-Tax Officer, Nakodar, then, in the backdrop of the fact that the Income-Tax Officer, Ward-4, Phagwara had de hors valid assumption of jurisdiction over the case of the assessee reopened his case, it was incumbent on the part of the Income-Tax Officer, Nakodar to have validly assumed jurisdiction u/s 147 of the Act by satisfying the requisite conditions which were sine qua non for framing of a valid assessment u/ss. 143(3)/148 by him. In sum and substance, it is a case before us where the Income-Tax Officer, Ward-4, Phagwara who had no jurisdiction over the case of the assessee had invalidly assumed jurisdiction and reopened his case, while for the Income-Tax Officer, Nakodar who was vested with the jurisdiction over the case of the assessee had after receiving the case records of the assessee framed the assessment vide his order passed u/ss. 143(3)/148, dated 26.12.2016 without validly assuming jurisdiction by satisfying the requisite conditions, viz. recording the “reasons to believe” and issuing notice u/s 148 of the Act which form the sine qua non for framing of a valid assessment within the meaning of Sec. 147 of the Act.
In our considered view, as the Income-Tax Officer, Nakodar had framed the assessment vide his order passed u/s 143(3)/148, dated 26.12.2016 without validly assuming jurisdiction u/s 147 of the Act, therefore, the same cannot be sustained and is liable to be quash subject of course to t he pending notices being ed. We, thus, in terms of our aforesaid observations quash the assessment framed by the Income-Tax Officer, Ward Nakodar, vide his order passed u/ss.143(3)/148, dated 26.12.2016.
FULL TEXT OF THE ORDER OF ITAT AMRITSAR
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