Late Parasmal Hangamilan Jain Vs ITO (ITAT Pune)
ITAT Says Dead Cannot Be Taxed – ITAT Pune Restores Case for Legal Adjudication
Department, based on AIR information, noticed that Late Parasmal Hangamilan Jain had purchased an immovable property worth ₹96.14 lakh & had deposited cash of ₹5 lakh in his bank account. Since no return of income was filed, AO reopened the case u/s 147. Notices u/s 148 & 142(1) were issued electronically on the registered email, but there was no compliance. AO thereafter passed reassessment order u/s 147 r.w.s. 144/144B on 22.09.2021 determining total income at ₹1,06,90,840/-. The additions included unexplained cash deposit of ₹5 lakh u/s 69A, unexplained investment in property of ₹96.14 lakh u/s 69 & unexplained expenditure towards stamp duty & registration charges of ₹5.76 lakh u/s 69C.
Before CIT(A), apart from challenging additions on merit, Assessee specifically raised a legal ground that assessment was framed in the name of a deceased person & hence void ab initio. However, CIT(A) did not adjudicate this jurisdictional issue & instead restored the matter to AO for fresh adjudication.
Before Tribunal, it was argued that assessment on a dead person is invalid in law & relied on several decisions including Motilal Hastimaji Bothra vs. ITO (Mumbai ITAT), Savita Kapila vs. ACIT (Delhi HC) & Bhavnaben K. Punjani vs. PCIT (Rajkot ITAT), which have consistently held that notices & assessment orders in the name of a deceased person are non-est. It was further submitted that there is no statutory obligation on legal heirs to intimate death to the Department.
