Venus Jewel Vs ACIT (Bombay High Court)
Bombay High Court held that it was not permissible for the Jurisdictional Assessing Officer to issue a notice under Section 148A(b), as the same would amount to breach of the provisions of section 151A of the Income Tax Act (i.e. faceless assessment scheme).
Facts- The petitioner, vide the present petition, has prayed for a relief that the action as taken by the respondents in regard to re-opening of the petitioner’s assessment, by resorting to the procedure u/s. 148A(a) and (d) of the Income Tax Act, 1961 and culminating into a final notice dated 25 April 2023 being issued u/s. 148 of the Act be quashed and set aside.
It is contested that the impugned notice as issued by the Jurisdictional Assessing Officer (JAO) is in the teeth of the provisions of Section 151A, in as much as the scheme for faceless assessment as notified by the Central Government by notification dated 29 March 2022 as made applicable for taking an action under such provisions, has not been followed.
Conclusion- Division Bench of this Court in Hexaware Technology Ltd. Vs. Assistant Commissioner of Income Tax has held that the provisions of Section 151A of the Act have clearly brought a regime of faceless assessment. The Court has held that it was not permissible for the JAO to issue a notice under Section 148A(b), as the same would amount to breach of the provisions of section 151A of the Act.
