Accenture Impex Pvt. Ltd. Vs DCIT (ITAT Delhi)
ITAT Quashes Reassessment: Approval from PCIT Instead of PCCIT Renders Section 148 Notice Invalid
The Delhi ITAT quashed the reassessment proceedings after holding that the notice issued under Section 148 was invalid for want of approval from the correct sanctioning authority prescribed under Section 151. The case pertained to AY 2016-17, where the reassessment was initiated on the basis of information regarding suspicious banking transactions and alleged involvement in fraudulent export activities.
The assessee challenged the reopening on the ground that the notice under Section 148 dated 11.07.2022 was issued after the expiry of three years from the end of the relevant assessment year, and therefore approval was required from the Principal Chief Commissioner/Chief Commissioner level authority as mandated under Section 151(ii) of the post-2021 reassessment regime. However, the approval had been obtained only from PCIT-1, Delhi.
The Tribunal relied upon the Supreme Court judgment in Union of India v. Rajeev Bansal (469 ITR 46), which held that Section 151 acts as an important safeguard against mechanical reopening and that reassessment notices issued after the prescribed period must receive sanction from the authority specifically mentioned in the statute. Since the sanction in the present case was obtained from an authority lower than the one mandated by law, the statutory requirement was not fulfilled.
Holding that the defect went to the root of jurisdiction, the Tribunal concluded that the notice issued under Section 148 was bad in law and void ab initio. Consequently, the reassessment proceedings and the assessment order passed pursuant thereto were also quashed.
FULL TEXT OF THE ORDER OF ITAT DELHI
The appeal of the assessee is directed against the order dated 17.09.2025 of ld. CIT(A)/NFAC passed u/s 250 of the Income Tax Act, 1961 (hereinafter referred to as “the Act”) wherein the Assessment Order passed u/s 147 r.w.s. 144 of the Act dated 28.05.2023 was set aside and the matter was restored to the file of the Assessing Officer for making a fresh assessment.
