Rakesh Chopra Vs ITO (ITAT Delhi)
No 143(2) Notice & Wrongly Ignored Valid Return – Reassessment Quashed ITAT Delhi Deletes ₹50.50 Lakh Addition
Assessee declared income of ₹2,65,566. The case was reopened u/s 147 and a fresh return was filed in response to notice u/s 148 on 30.10.2018. Assessment was completed u/s 147/143(3) on 12.12.2018 by adding ₹50,50,000 u/s 69 as unexplained investment in Milestone Capital Advisors Ltd. CIT(A) dismissed the appeal on 05.09.2024.
Before Tribunal, Assessee demonstrated that the return filed on 30.10.2018 had been duly e-verified through Aadhaar OTP, supported by an affidavit. However, AO ignored this validly filed & verified return by incorrectly noting that e-verification was “pending”. Tribunal observed that the assessment was framed on an erroneous premise without considering the correct return already on record. Further, no statutory notice u/s 143(2) was issued after the filing of return in response to 148, which is a mandatory jurisdictional requirement. In absence of such notice, jurisdiction to frame reassessment never crystallised.
Tribunal held that the assessment order suffered from fundamental procedural defects & could not be sustained. The order of CIT(A) was also set aside. The addition of ₹50,50,000 stood deleted & the appeal was allowed.
FULL TEXT OF THE ORDER OF ITAT DELHI
