Surender Kumar Wadhwa Vs PCIT (Delhi High Court)
Delhi HC Again Upholds Concurrent JAO–FAO Powers; 148A(d) Order dt 09.04.2024 Held Within Limitation
Division Bench Delhi High Court dismissed the writ petition challenging reassessment proceedings initiated through notice u/s 148A(b) dt 26.03.2024 & consequential order u/s 148A(d) dt 09.04.2024. Petitioner had assailed the proceedings on two grounds – first, that only the Faceless Assessing Officer (FAO) had competence to issue notice u/s 148 after the insertion of Sec 151A, & second, that the order u/s 148A(d) was barred by limitation.
Petitioner argued that, post-2022, reassessment powers vested solely in the Faceless AO under the Faceless Reassessment Scheme & Sec 151A, & that any notice by the Jurisdictional AO (JAO) was void ab initio. It was also urged that the order passed on 09.04.2024 exceeded the limitation prescribed under Sec 149, since the period between notice & order allegedly did not comply with the statutory minimum.
The Bench, however, rejected both contentions. Referring to its own earlier decision in T.K.S. Builders Pvt. Ltd. v. ITO (2024:DHC:8330-DB), the Court reiterated that both JAO & FAO have concurrent jurisdiction to initiate reassessment. It observed that T.K.S. Builders continues to be binding within Delhi, the Supreme Court having neither stayed nor overturned it. Accordingly, the jurisdictional plea was held to be devoid of merit.
