Bharat Krishi Kendra Vs Union of India (Chhattisgarh High Court)
The Chhattisgarh High Court dismissed the writ petition filed by Bharat Krishi Kendra challenging reassessment proceedings initiated under Section 148 of the Income Tax Act, 1961 for AY 2017-18. The petitioner contended that the notice was invalid because it did not properly record “reasons to believe”, the cash deposits had already been disclosed in the income-tax return, approval under Section 151 had been granted by the Principal Commissioner instead of the Joint Commissioner, the approval did not bear a digital signature, and the Department had failed to follow the Standard Procedure dated 10.1.2018 concerning enquiry before issuance of notice.
The petitioner stated that cash deposits in four bank accounts during the demonetisation period from 9.11.2016 to 13.12.2016 had been disclosed in the return. According to the petitioner, the Assessing Officer considered deposits in only one bank account and treated the difference as escaped income. The petitioner also relied upon Ghanshyam K. Khabrani Vs. ACIT and CIT Vs. Aquatic Remedies Pvt. Ltd. in support of the contention that sanction must be obtained from the authority specified under Section 151. Reliance was also placed on Sabh Infrastructure Ltd. Vs. Asstt. Commissioner of Income Tax concerning the procedure for reopening assessments.
