Sanjeev Kumar Nalam Hyderabad Vs ITO (ITAT Hyderabad)
Wrong Sanction, No Jurisdiction: Hyderabad ITAT Quashes Reassessment Issued Beyond 3 Years for Want of Approval u/s 151(ii)
Hyderabad ITAT (B-Bench) in Shri Sanjeev Kumar Nalam vs. ITO, Ward-1, Adilabad (ITA No.669/Hyd/2025, AY 2017-18, order dated 19.12.2025) quashed the reassessment framed u/s 147 r.w.s. 144 on the sole legal ground of lack of valid sanction u/s 151. The Tribunal held that the notice u/s 148 dated 29.07.2022 was issued beyond three years from the end of the relevant AY and yet approval was taken only from the Principal Commissioner, whereas Section 151(ii) mandatorily requires sanction of the Principal Chief Commissioner / Principal Director General / Chief Commissioner / Director General in such cases. Following the binding decision of the Telangana High Court in Deloitte Consulting India Pvt. Ltd. and its own earlier coordinate bench ruling, the Tribunal ruled that approval by an incompetent authority goes to the root of jurisdiction, rendering the notice void ab initio. Consequently, the reassessment order dated 31.05.2023 was set aside, with all other grounds left open.
FULL TEXT OF THE ORDER OF ITAT HYDERABAD
This appeal is filed by Shri Sanjeev Kumar Nalam (“the assessee”), feeling aggrieved by the order passed by the Learned Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeals), National Faceless Appeal Centre (NFAC), Delhi (“Ld. CIT(A)”) dated 10.03.2025 for the A.Y. 2017-18.
