Ram Narayan Dani Vs Deputy Commissioner/ACIT (Rajasthan High Court)
In the case of Ram Narayan Dani Vs Deputy Commissioner/ACIT, the Rajasthan High Court quashed a reassessment notice issued to the petitioner under Section 148 of the Income Tax Act, 1961. The court’s decision was based on a procedural irregularity: the notice was issued by a Jurisdictional Assessing Officer (JAO) instead of the statutorily required Faceless Assessing Officer (FAO).
The court’s ruling was consistent with established judicial precedents. Specifically, the judgment cited the cases of Shree Cement Limited Vs. Assistant Commissioner of Income-Tax & Others, Sharda Devi Chhajer Vs. The Income Tax Officer & Another, and Hexaware Technologies Ltd. Vs. Assistant Commissioner of Income-tax. In these previous rulings, the court had consistently held that reassessment notices issued by a JAO, rather than an FAO, were invalid.
While acknowledging that a Special Leave Petition challenging the Hexaware Technologies ruling is pending before the Supreme Court, the Rajasthan High Court confirmed that the current legal position dictates the invalidity of the notice. The court, therefore, quashed the notice dated April 24, 2023, and any subsequent reassessment order. However, it granted the tax authorities liberty to revive the notice if the Supreme Court ultimately overturns the cited precedents. The petitioner reserved the right to raise other challenges to the reassessment at a later stage, if necessary. The court’s decision effectively disposed of the petition, but it leaves the door open for the tax department pending a higher court’s decision on the matter.
