2023 (6) TMI 978 - HC - Income Tax

Reopening of assessment u/s 147 - application of mind by the PCIT while granting sanction u/s 151 - validity of order disposing objections questioned - Petitioner states that reopening notice was issued after the expiry of four years of the assessment year but was candid to say that this was a case where no order u/s 143(3) had been passed - HELD THAT - We find that in the order Rejecting petitioner s objections, has not given any reasons as to why he did not find any merit in the objections raised by the assessee. The assessee had also, in his objections, raised the issue of non application of mind by the PCIT while granting sanction u/s 151 - PCIT has simply endorsed Yes . No date is mentioned and it does not also disclose why he felt there was a need to grant the sanction. None of these points have been discussed in the order disposing the objections. We quash and set aside the order dated 15th November 2019 disposing the objections and remand the matter for denovo consideration to the Jurisdictional Assessing Officer (JAO).

Issues involved:
The issues involved in the judgment are the validity of a notice issued under Section 148 of the Income Tax Act, 1961, and the order disposing objections raised by the assessee regarding the notice.

Validity of Notice under Section 148:
The petitioner challenged a notice dated 29th March 2019 issued under Section 148 of the Income Tax Act, 1961, and the order disposing objections dated 15th November 2019. The petitioner argued that the reopening notice was issued after the expiry of four years of the assessment year, but no order under Section 143(3) of the Act had been passed. The court, after hearing the arguments, declined to quash the notice dated 29th March 2019.

Failure to Provide Reasons in Order Disposing Objections:
The court noted that the order dated 15th November 2019 rejecting the petitioner's objections did not provide reasons for not finding merit in the objections raised by the assessee. The petitioner had raised concerns about the non-application of mind by the Principal Commissioner of Income Tax while granting sanction under Section 151 of the Act. The court found that these points were not discussed in the order disposing the objections. Consequently, the court quashed and set aside the order dated 15th November 2019 and remanded the matter for denovo consideration to the Jurisdictional Assessing Officer.

Non-Compliance with Court Order:
Despite a court order directing the respondent to provide certain documents to the petitioner, the required documents were not provided as per the petitioner's claim. The court, while disposing of the petition, did not take immediate action against the respondents for not obeying the court order but directed respondent no. 1 to provide the necessary document within two weeks from the judgment date.

Further Proceedings and Compliance:
The court directed respondent no. 1 to provide the document within two weeks, following which the petitioner could file further submissions within one week. Respondent no. 1 was instructed to dispose of the objections raised by the petitioner within four weeks of receiving the further submissions. A personal hearing was mandated before passing any order, and the order was required to be reasoned, addressing every submission of the petitioner. If respondent no. 1 intended to rely on any judgments or orders, a list thereof was to be provided to the petitioner along with the notice of the personal hearing.

Contempt Proceedings and Clarification:
In case of non-compliance with the court's order, the petitioner was granted the right to apply to the Court for appropriate orders, including the possibility of contempt proceedings against respondent no. 1. The court clarified that it had not made any observations on the merits of the matter and disposed of the petition accordingly.

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